A Day to Remember
by Vbaby22
Summary: It’s a normal day in the life of two college friends, until someone ended up dead. AU ichiruki. Rated M for future Death, Blood, and Lemons.
1. Typical Morning

My first AU

My first AU!! Please read I hope you like it. For those of you reading my other story…I'll be working on that too. I just got inspired to write something new!

A Day to Remember: AU IchiRuki

It's a normal day in the life of two college friends, until someone ended up dead…..

*****Note: this chapter has been slightly revised as of 7/5/09*****

**Chapter 1: Typical morning**

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"Wake UP!!"

"AHH! What the-?!" a young man yelled as he fell off his couch.

He slowly removed himself from the floor and turned to look at the cause of his demise.

He walked slowly over to her and glared.

"You-"

"You were snoring, and it was time to get up." She said plainly cutting him off and walked into the kitchen.

He gave her a funny look, grunted, and gave up. He took a moment to briefly smile as he shook his head while proceeding to the shower.

This was the typical morning for Kurosaki Ichigo and Kuchiki Rukia, when she stayed over that is. She would yell to wake him up, he would complain, and finally he would get up and head to the shower.

The two had been at this for 3 years, ever since they started college. After high school, their friends swore they would end up together, but not much had been going on between the two. Rukia would visit his apartment when she could to study or watch some crazy show with him. Every now and then (which had turned into more often than not over the years), she'd say she was too tired to leave and would need a bed soon (all of which was a ploy to stay longer that Ichigo was well aware of, but he knew she would never admit to it).

Now in their last year of school it was becoming harder for her to come around. Both were increasingly busy for one reason or another and the chance for romance hardly ever came up. Ichigo was beginning to miss what they have already, though he still wasn't sure what it was.

Ichigo took another glance at Rukia before closing the door behind him.

"Take a picture it will last longer…" Rukia said eating breakfast not even looking in Ichigo's direction.

"You know I've been considering doing that, the way your eating you'll never keep that figure…."

Rukia turned around and stuck her tongue out, then returned to her food.

Ichigo chuckled to himself and closed the bathroom door. He began running the water for his shower and turned to the mirror.

He reached over to the side and lifted up a piece of broken wood that revealed a button. He sighed one good time.

"Reason number 1 we'll only be friends…" He pressed the button and the mirror turned into a video phone.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, agent 3472 signing in for duty……."

* * *

Rukia looked over her shoulder to make sure Ichigo's door was shut. He still didn't start the shower yet. She went back to her food and continued eating. She spilled some milk on herself, and tried to wipe it off until she remembered she was wearing one of Ichigo's shirts and stop worrying. She laughed to herself.

"_He'll get mad when I tell him, but I don't mind."_ She thought.

She smiled again, but it soon faded. She began thinking about all the time they used to spend together and how close they are.

Rukia laughed, "He probably doesn't think of me like that; he would've said something by now. What reason would he have to hold how he feels about me in?"

Rukia peeked around the corner and listened for Ichigo's shower to start. After a few more moments she could hear the blast of the water loud and clear and she rushed over to her bag. Ichigo's apartment was a mess. It took her longer than she would have liked to locate the bag. She had to dig through a pile of clothes to find it.

"Ichigo should not have clothes all over his living room!" Rukia spoke out loud.

When she finally located her bag, she took out her cell phone. She had it on silent, but she knew it was ringing off the hook.

"Kuchiki Rukia here…" she said breathing heavily as she answered her phone.

"You missed sign in time again Kuchiki. You're over that Kurosaki kids' house again aren't you? You can't remember to bring your laptop once in a while?"

"Whatever. What's up Matsumoto?"

"You've got a job: Shishio Makoto. He wants a body guard that doesn't look like a body guard."

Rukia sighed. She hated not signing in on time. She always got assigned to the garbage no one else wanted.

"What does that nutcase need a body guard for? He's a Yakuza, he should have plenty of protection. I don't like this." Rukia said uneasily.

"What's not to like. It's a job and it pays a lot. Wait….you wanna stay with your strawberry?? Awwww!" Matsumoto yelled through the phone.

Rukia pulled away from the phone so not to here all of her associates girly talk. A small time later she put the phone back to her ear.

"Are you finished?" Rukia said annoyed.

"Whatever. When are you guys gonna do it?" she said bluntly.

"MATSUMOTO!" Rukia yelled embarrassed.

"I mean come on, how long are you gonna play high school? You do like him, right?"

"Of course I do. He's been there for me so many times. It's just… I think something is holding him back. At first I though I was the one holding back, but this past year, I've noticed it's him." Rukia said sadly.

"Why were you holding back?"

"I thought this body guard job would be weird and it might get in the way, but so far, I've had no incidents and a lot of happy clients. And now that I think I'm ready for a real relationship, I don't think he is…" She added.

"Wow. Too much Drama! Well, don't be late for class. Happy Monday!!" She said as she hung up.

"Thanks a lot," Rukia said to the dial tone.

She slowly got up, thinking about everything she just said. "_I wonder if there is someone else he could like?" _she thought.

She shuddered at the thought and began to pick up some of Ichigo's things. She found the remote to the TV through the mess and turned it on, then glanced down the way toward the bathroom.

"Ichigo takes forever in the shower…."

* * *

The mirror/computer opened up and emerged a blue light that scanned the surrounding bath room. Ichigo sighed as he waited for completion. He shifted to make sure the markings on his shoulder faced the mirror with his face.

"Voice confirmation, body and eye scan complete. Identity confirmed. Good Morning Mr. Kurosaki." The mirror said in a female voice and shifted to a command screen.

Ichigo huffed, "Yeah well, what's good about it?"

"Please repeat, didn't understand the question…." The mirror said.

"God, never mind. Find jobs..."

"Searching for jobs…….scanning……Jobs found…"

"List by dollar amount, lowest to highest…"

"Separating by dollar amount… Complete. Job 1: Makinouchi Ippo…"

"The boxer?! Who wants him dead?" Ichigo said surprised.

"Unidentified payer from the boxing association…"

"Price?"

"10,000 USD"

"Pass. Continue listing."

"Job 2: Gene Star. Price 15,000 USD. Job 3: Shishio Makoto. Price: 30,000 USD"

"Stop... Shishio Makoto, who's the payer, and what's the risk? Why is the pay so high for a local Yakuza?"

"Unidentified payer; 50 percent of the funds will be transferred at the beginning of the job, the rest upon completion. Risks: Target is skilled in several martial arts, excellent shot with any gun, master swordsman. Seven attempts have been made on his life. All have failed."

Ichigo smiled. "A challenge, I'll take it."

"Job assigned. 50 percent of the funds have been transferred into your account. Time limit for this job: 1 week."

"Cool. Sign off Job search. List weapons on hand with ammunition."

"Weapons on hand with ammunition, one: Your sword."

"WHAT?! I'm out of ammo again! Shit… I'll go to the store after the jobs done. This guy is a master swords man, so this should be fun. Sign off and shut down."

"Shutting down….."

The mirror returned to its normal state and immediately fogged up due to the humid state the running water caused the bathroom to be in. Ichigo turned to his shower and stepped in. The water was still nice and warm.

"_Haven't killed a man with a sword in a long time… This should be interesting_…." He thought to himself as he continued to wash up.

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A/N: So….. How was that? Should I go on?? Please REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!! And let me know what you think! I know this was short, not my normal. Next chapter should have more to it! So review!

**Next Chapter: School Sucks**


	2. School Sucks

Thanks for the great reviews on my first AU!!

Here's chapter two! I hope ya like it!

WARNING LIME Its toward the end and its not that bad.

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_**Chapter 2: School Sucks**_

The orange head man stood in the shower directly underneath the water. The water trickled down his toned body to the tub floor. He had his eyes open.

"Shit, I still can't believe I don't have any ammo." He said sighing.

He stood upright and reached to turn the shower off.

"ICHIGO!"

"SHIT!!" Ichigo yelled as he slipped in the tub and almost hit his head.

"Are you ok…." Rukia asked concerned after hearing all the noise.

"Just great," he mumbled, "Professional hit man dies in shower after being surprised by petite girl…."

"Ichigo?" Rukia said again in concern.

The tall man slowly got up and turned the shower off, successfully this time, and stepped out the shower. He shook some excess water from his hair and angrily approached the bathroom door. He swung it open.

Rukia stepped back surprised.

"What the hell Ichigo? Are you ok or not!?" she yelled.

"NO THANKS TO YOU! I ALMOST BROKE MY NECK!" he yelled back.

"IT'S YOUR OWN FAULT FOR TAKING AN HOUR SHOWER!" she retaliated.

Ichigo paused a moment and realized he had been in the shower for some time. Rukia stood in front of him upset with a towel in hand. He was sure it would be time for the both of them to get to class.

Defeated, Ichigo scowled. Rukia watched him as he walked away toward his room. Even though she was mad at him, she still watched him walk away until he closed the door behind him. His body always glistened when he got out of the shower. And with that nice tan and perfectly toned muscles she couldn't help but stare. Kurosaki Ichigo wet and wearing only a towel, who wouldn't look.

Rukia turned her attention to the bathroom, she had to hurry up and take a shower. At first glance she was already disgusted all over again. Ichigo left his clothes all over the place. She sighed and kicked the clothes off to the side.

"I will not clean up two rooms for you," she huffed, "I hope he didn't use up all the hot water."

She turned on the hot water and to her dismay it was cooler than it should be. She quickly removed her clothes and jumped in. The water seamed to get cooler as each second went by. She grabbed her sponge and the soap and began to wash up.

She used to start with her legs, until one day Ichigo mocked her for always doing things backwards.

"_Why start at the bottom when the top is still dirty. You take the long way to do everything!" he said._

How that conversation started only god knows. Rukia giggled and began washing her arms.

As she worked her way down her body she couldn't help but think of Ichigo. They've known each other since senior year of high school. It's been so long since that first day. And what a day that was.

_**Flashback**_

It was a typical night for a raven head girl who was leaving work for home. It wasn't too late. A Friday night at 11pm was not late at all. The young girl walked home just like she did every Friday. She passed by the occasional drunk that just had to make a pass at her.

For some reason, the drunkards were particularly annoying tonight. So the young girl decided to take a short cut through an alley. It would split her time of getting home in half.

She was hesitant at first. She usually only took this way home during the day. At night, there were so many places for strange guys to hide.

"What are the chances of that happening?" the girl shrugged as she turned down the alley. She was only a little worried. Besides, it wasn't like she couldn't handle herself. She had been taking defensive classes since she knew how to walk. The chances of her being attacked were slim and the chances that the attacker can take her are even slimmer. With that thought in mind, the small girl walked down the alley with a little confidence.

The alley was dark, and she could hear things moving around everywhere. The wind was blowing quite a bit stronger down the alley than in the street. Paper rustled and made it hard to focus on a single noise.

Suddenly she stopped in her tracks. There was a knife sticking her in the back. Someone had snuck up on her.

"This is why little girls, don't walk around dark alleys…." The voice said as it inched closer to her ears.

The young girl quickly turned and struck her opponent in the face, then kicked him in the stomach.

"This is why you shouldn't mistake that little girl for a defenseless one!" she yelled and started to run.

But as hard as she ran the figure caught up to her and slammed her face forward into the wall. She tried to shake free, but she couldn't. He had her pinned.

"You know, I did want to look at your pretty face while this went down, but I think I like you struggling even more…" The man said evilly as he began creeping down the girls' skirt.

"_This can't be happening_," The young girl said to herself with tears in her eyes. She was completely defenseless.

She closed her eyes tight, and continued to struggle though she prepared for the worst. The man had finally reached the bottom of her skirt and began to inch up her thighs.

Before Rukia knew it, he had reached her underwear. Her eyes shot open at the horror that was about to occur.

She gasped, not at the feeling of someone penetrating her, but at the loss of a heavy weight on her.

She turned around quickly to see a tall man in front of her with strikingly orange hair. There was blood all over his hand, but it wasn't his. The young girl turned and saw another man in front of him on the ground. There was blood all over his face. She thought his jaw was broken.

The tall man faced Rukia and slowly approached her.

"You know," the orange head man began, slightly startling the girl, "He was right. Young girls shouldn't be walking down dark alleys, no matter how good their right hook is…."

Rukia looked down at the ground at first embarrassed until she realized something.

"Wait a minute. You mean you were watching that hold time!? What if he would have put his nasty hands inside me?!" she yelled.

"I had to wait until he was completely preoccupied. I wouldn't have let him get that far."

"How in the hell would you be able to tell how far he got?!" she asked infuriated.

"I was on the ground over there. I kinda fell asleep. I had a pretty good view!" He said joking.

His joke was stopped short by the famous right hook he mentioned earlier.

"HEY! You hit your savior?" he yelled surprised.

"NO! I HIT A PERVERTED ASSHOLE!" she yelled back.

"I wasn't serious. It was just to make you feel better and get your mind off what happened." He said.

Rukia paused. Though she had been attacked, he was right. She didn't feel disgusted with herself at all. She looked back at the young man before her. He didn't look much older than she was.

"Well, where were you then?" she asked, trying to change the subject.

"I was about a block away when I saw you walk into the alley. When I got here, he had just grabbed you. I only knew you hit him because I saw the other bruise on his face."

"Oh," Rukia said a little ashamed now that she hit her savior, "Well, thank you."

The tall man walked up to the girl even closer and extended his hand.

"What's your name?" he asked.

The girl took his hand and shook it. "Kuchiki, Kuchiki Rukia. You?"

"Kurosaki Ichigo. Just moved here. So I guess I might see you around in school," he began.

Rukia looked at her arm. It hurt a little from where the man held her roughly. She also sighed at the thought of the man that just saved her being at her school.

"Don't worry, Rukia, I'm not going to say anything." He said reassuringly, "I also don't usually give people the privilege of hearing my jokes, so don't expect another one."

Rukia was shocked at his straightforwardness, but it was welcomed. Anything to make her forget about what just happened. She jerked away from his hand and smirked at him.

"I wasn't looking forward to another one of your jokes! And who said you could call me Rukia, _Ichigo_…" she snapped back.

Ichigo smirked back at her. "You want me to walk you home?" he asked seriously.

Rukia smiled, "Yes. Thank you."

She turned and Ichigo followed closely beside her. Rukia looked up at him briefly. She was around lots of guys, but she never had the strange feeling she was having with this one. For some reason, not just because he saved her, she felt at home with him.

"Hey Rukia," Ichigo said, shocking Rukia out her daze, "Don't expect me to keep walking you home either."

Rukia turned her head to hide her smile. "Shut up Ichigo."

_**End Flashback**_

Rukia smiled at her thoughts. "That seams like ages ago…come to think of it, he never did tell me how he knew what that guy said to me when he snuck up behind me…shit!"

The water had finally gone completely cold and Rukia's thoughts were lost. She jumped out the shower and grabbed her towel and wrapped it around her. The air was cold all over her body and caused goosebumps.

She went to the door and opened it quickly only to see Ichigo directly in front of the door, still shirtless with a pair of boxers on. He was shocked the Rukia opened the door. He stood there for a moment with his hand still in the "knocking position", looking her over, though not intentionally.

She was beautiful. Her hair, her eyes, from her shoulders to her toes. Perfect, she was perfect.

"_Ichigo, stop, don't do it, you can't. You know what happens, it's the Kurosaki curse. Don't do it….." _he thought to himself.

"Ichigo?"

"Yeah?" Ichigo said alarmed, and put his hand down.

"Did you want something?" she asked blinking perplexed.

"Yeah, I wanted to apologize. I didn't mean to snap at you earlier."

He looked at her again, this time in her eyes intensely. She stared back at him, wondering what he was up to. Why was he looking at her like that?

They continued staring at each other. Ichigo wanted to look away, but he couldn't. He cursed himself for coming back to apologize. What was he thinking?

"Ichigo, its ok. You can be an ass sometimes, but I'll always-" Rukia stopped herself.

Ichigo's eyes widened at her words.

"_What the hell was I thinking_…" she thought. "Excuse me, I have to get ready for class," she muttered as she tried to walk past Ichigo.

He grabbed her arm lightly and stopped her. He looked at her in the eyes again, but said nothing. Rukia looked back at him a little worried she had said the wrong thing.

"Ichigo-"

"Shut up Rukia…" he said smirking.

He pulled her closer to him and brought his other hand to her waist. He looked at her so intensely and all Rukia could do was give him a look of uncertainty. Was this really about to happen or was she dreaming?

He kept one hand on her waist and rubbed her arm with the other. He soon brought his hand slowly from her arm to her face. He gently cupped her chin and looked at her deeply in the eyes waiting for her approval, which she gave. She closed her eyes and waited for him to make the next move.

He moved closer to her. He could feel her chest against his. He breathed heavily as he felt her cold wet skin against his warm body. He tilted her head up a little and caressed her face as his face got closer to hers.

"_I shouldn't do this. I can't put her in danger_…" He thought to himself as he finally claimed her lips.

They were so soft, everything he always thought they would be. He began to kiss her deeper and Rukia's hand came up and behind his neck. She rubbed the back of his head and his neck so sensuously, it made him want more. He kissed her more, this time sliding his tongue inside her mouth.

Rukia opened her month, welcoming his tongue. She felt his tongue rub hers and she never felt anything better before in her life. She moved her hands from his neck to his back. She loved touching him, he was so strong.

Ichigo moved his hand from her face to her neck and pulled away from her for a moment to look at her. He had to take a breath and look her over. He had to make sure this was real.

Rukia looked at him lovingly and gently touched his face. She tip toed up to his face and kissed him again, and again and again. Ichigo was over come with emotion and picked her up bridal style and took her to his room. He continued kissing her all the way there.

He gently placed her on the bed and put a hand on her thigh, pausing for a moment to make sure it was ok. Rukia gave him a look that sent chills down his spine. He knew it was ok.

He slowly removed Rukia's towel and got a glimpse of her whole body. She really was perfect. He slowly rubbed her legged and moved up to her stomach until he reached her breast. Her nipples were hard and cold from shower. Ichigo bent down and placed his mouth on the tip of her breast and caressed it with his tongue. Rukia squirmed at the new found pleasure.

Ichigo lifted his head and returned to Rukia's lips and kissed her with full force. He was passionate and gentle at the same time. Rukia moaned. She had been waiting for him for so long; three long years. She shifted and wrapped her legs and arms around Ichigo.

Ichigo began kissing her every where; her chest, shoulders, neck, checks. He almost forgot why he had been putting this off; why he had been avoiding this.

"ICHIGO, RUKIA!! ARE YOU GUYS UP!" A yell came from outside his apartment along with 2 loud knocks.

Ichigo and Rukia where shocked and jumped a little.

"I STOPPED BY BECAUSE I KNEW YOU GUYS WOULD FORGET ABOUT THE TEST!"

Ichgio and Rukia chuckled. They did forget about the test.

"Sounds like Inoue," he began, "What's one test," Ichigo said smirking.

"Not much," Rukia said smiling back.

He inched back to Rukia and kissed her again.

"I HOPE YOU REMEMBER THIS TEST IS WORTH 50 PERCENT OF CLASS!"

Rukia and Ichigo look at each other again.

"Shit, that's today." He said annoyed. He looked at Rukia one quick time and she nodded. "WE'RE UP INOUE, WE'RE COMING!"

"OK! SEE YOU GUYS IN CLASS!" the girl said happily leaving from Ichigo's door.

Rukia and Ichigo both looked at each other and sighed.

"I hate school." Ichigo said a little out of breath.

"Yeah, school sucks," Rukia added out of breath as well.

They both laughed and quickly got ready for class.

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**A/N**: I hope you guys liked this!! I'm liking my new story so much! I have a million ideas! This was such a happy note to end on. That's not like me. Don't worry, I got some good stuff coming next chapter!! This was kinda a back round chapter. And I hope no one thinks they rushed into this. They've liked each other for a while, emotion kinda burst out for a moment. :P

And don't forget to REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!

Next chapter: What Next?


	3. What Next?

My first AU goes on!!

Chapter 3: What Next?

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"You will have one hour and thirty five minutes to complete this test. Remember to use a number 2 pencil and do your best; this test is worth the majority of your grade. Good Luck. You may begin."

A large lecture hall of 200 students quietly opened up their exams. Out of those students, 198 had looks of determination or confusion, the other two displayed hints of happiness. For those 2 students the test didn't seam as hard; especially compared to the upcoming conversation they were going to have with each other.

"_Answer's "A", hmm, that one is "B","_ the young man thought as he looked a few chairs down to his raven haired friend. "_The faster I get done with this test, the sooner I can talk to her about this morning. Back to the test….hmmm, this one's "C"…"_

The raven head had also been thinking similar thoughts. It took everything she had not to look up at the orange headed man next to her. She just wanted to finish the test and talk to him as soon as she was done.

The room was eerily quiet at first, which was to be expected. This test was just as, if not more, important as the final. After the first hour, the chairs began to feel as uncomfortable as they looked. Students began to turn in their seat, drop their pencils and stretch periodically just to get some movement in their arms and legs. The noise became nerve wrecking soon enough.

"_Gosh can't anyone stay still_," Rukia thought, "_Ichigo isn't moving around…no, finish the test, don't look at him until you're done."_

"Twenty minutes remaining." The professor announced.

"_Well, that's that_," Rukia proclaimed to herself. She stood up and turned her test into the student aid and walked out of the room.

It was bright outside, a very lively day for early fall. The trees still had most of there leaves, flowers had not yet lost there color. Students were out and about, waiting for friends to exit the lecture hall.

"Hey Rukia!" someone yelled from afar.

"Matsumoto?" Rukia asked confused.

"Hey! I was looking all over for you!" she yelled a little out of breath, "What on earth is with that look?"

"What look?" Rukia asked innocently, "I don't have a look…"

"I know that look…"

"No you don't…"

"You kissed him!!" Matsumoto yelled excitedly.

"Rangiku!" Rukia yelled embarrassed.

"I knew it! It's about time! Oh, crap, I almost forgot what I came over here for. You need to meet up with that Yakuza guy at 10ish."

"Damn it, it's almost 9:30 now. Why didn't you tell me when you called?" Rukia asked.

"I forgot! OH, HI ICHIGO!! WE'RE OVER HERE!" she yelled happily waving.

Ichigo looked over a little annoyed. By the looks of it Matsumoto had figured out something happened between him and Rukia. His busty acquaintance was never this happy in the morning.

"Hey Matsumoto, still can't find a shirt that fits you I see…" He began.

"Ichigo you're so mean! You should be happy this morning!" She said with a wink. "Well, I gotta go to work. So do you Rukia! Catch up with you guys later."

"And you guys have been friends how long?" Ichigo asked jokingly.

"Too long," Rukia added with a small smile.

They both looked at each other for a moment not sure what to say. The wind blew gently through both of the hair, as if imploring for someone to speak.

"So you have to get to work?" Ichigo asked breaking the silence.

"Yeah, I do. So I guess I'll call you when I'm done. Maybe I can stop by?" Rukia asked.

Ichigo looked up at her a little surprised, but still happy that she brought it up.

"Yeah, that'd be ok with me." He answered.

"Ok, then, I'll call. See ya." She said as she jogged off.

Ichigo sighed. That wasn't as awkward as he thought it would be. He scratched the back of his head and took a brief look around for a seat. There were some benches underneath a nearby tree. He walked over slowly and took a seat. He yawned and stretched before he got completely comfortable. He leaned back and took another lazy breath.

"Don't you have some work to be getting to?" a voice asked.

"Shit! Ishida when did you get here?" a startled Ichigo asked.

Ishida stood before Ichigo very nonchalantly in his blue jeans and polo shirt. Ishiada and Ichigo had been "friends" since they were kids, but that would never stop him from giving a good insult.

"How you're the number one hit man in the Kurosaki clan is beyond me. Especially when you keep letting people sneak up on you." The man with glasses asked.

"Kiss my ass. What do you want?" Ichigo asked irritated.

"That yakuza guy you signed up for this morning…"

"Yeah. What about him?" Ichigo asked as Ishida took a seat next to him.

"Well, I've heard that he's hired some expert body guard to be protecting him for the next few weeks. Just a suggestion; you might want to get an early start before the body guard settles in." Ishida concluded.

"An early start? What for? This body guard can't be that good. And this Shishio Makoto guy must not be as strong as they say if he needs someone to protect him." Ichigo smirked, "What about you, you get anything good?"

"No. I didn't get that feeling for the other guys on the list. Those guys didn't have it coming. But I'm ok on money anyway. I'll check the list tomorrow."

"Yeah that's best. A hit isn't a hit if that feeling doesn't come. I got it 10 fold on this guy, as soon as I heard the name. This guy has done some bad things."

The two sat in silence for a moment, letting the breeze hit their faces. Ishida inhaled and exhaled one good time. He turned to Ichigo for a brief moment; then looked away from him, but with a small curve in his lips. It almost resembled a smile.

"Still can't believe we've been doing this for almost 5 years. You ready for your 22nd birthday?" he said going back to his plan expression.

Ichigo was a little surprised by the question, but he took a breath and gazed into the sky and answered it casually.

"I'm looking forward to it. I'm still wondering if it's as big a deal as my dad makes it out to be. You?"

"Yeah same here. Still, I think there is something our fathers are not telling us. I mean, this whole "generations of assailants" thing, it's missing something. And there used to be 5 clans. What happened to the other 3?"

"Yeah, yeah I know. I wasn't told much when I turned 15. I was thrown into a basement with Urahara and trained for two years."

"I had to train with my dad. You got off easy."

Ichigo laughed, hard and loud for about 5 minutes. Ishida had a frown on his face the entire time.

"I'm leaving. Have fun with your mark." Ishida said a little upset as he stood up and walked away.

Ichigo continued chuckling to himself for a few more moments before he stood up. He had two more classes to attended, but he'd be done by two o' clock for the day. He did have the time to prepare for his job later that night.

"I guess I will do it today. Then I'll have the rest of the night to talk to Rukia." He thought out loud.

He slowly turned toward the direction of his destination and began to stroll to his next class for the day.

* * *

The streets around campus were busier than Rukia had originally anticipated. She was late for her job already and getting later. She started running through intersections, not waiting for the light to change. The Yakuza's main place of business wasn't too far from campus, but it was a Monday. Cars and people were everywhere, and it made it difficult to run.

"There it is…" she spoke to herself as she could see the Yakuza's business ahead.

She ran into the building full force without thinking. She ran into a man as soon as she entered.

"Hey, watch where're ya goin' missy." The man replied.

He was a tall man, with a creepy smile. He was wearing a black business suit, and it made his white hair stand out even more. He was giving off a dangerous vibe. One Rukia didn't like.

"Sorry, I am here for the body guard job for Shishio Makoto. Do you know where I can find him?" Rukia asked.

The man smiled at Rukia with his eyes barely open.

"Oh, ya are. You're perfect." The man began, "I'm Gin Ichimaru, I can take you to Makoto."

There was something about this man Rukia didn't like, but this was her job, she wasn't going to back down because she was afraid of someone's looks.

"Thank you very much." Rukia replied following behind Gin.

"I don't know if they told ya, but the job could run for two weeks. Ya won't have to come this early next time either. This was just fo'set up." Gin began.

"Ok, that's fine." She answered while looking around the large building.

"And if for some reason Makoto is no longer around before the 2 weeks are up, you'll still get paid…"

"Why wouldn't he be-"

"Here we are…." Gin said, cutting Rukia off and opening the doors to a very large room.

The room didn't look like the rest of the building at all. She could see up to the third floor, which looked close to the top of the building. She turned toward the only desk in the large room, there was a man sitting there. He was huge, and covered in bandages.

"Makoto was in a bad accident. Don't let the bandages scare ya. Have fun…" Gin said as he left the room and closed the doors behind him.

"Ok…" Rukia said feeling a little nervous.

She looked over to the disturbing man again and slowly began to walk over to him. She was walking faster than she meant to and reached the desk quickly. She looked up at her new employer.

"Nice to meet you sir, I am Kuchiki Rukia, your body guard." She said.

The man looked up slowly and stared at Rukia with his blood shot eyes for a moment, then, he grinned.

"Don't worry young lady," he said in a deep voice, "There's nothing to worry about with this job. I've got something special in mind…."

* * *

Nightfall had come already. The moon had completely taken over the sky along with the stars. The wind was blowing rather fiercely.

"Nice night to get a job done," Ichigo said smirking from atop a building.

He was wearing all black with his face covered by a mask and a sword on his back. The building he was on top of was none other than the business building of his mark. Ichigo inched near the edge of the roof to view all the windows. There was one open on the floor below him.

"_Humph, they're making this too easy."_ Ichigo thought to himself.

He flung himself off the roof top and landed perfectly on the ledge of the open window. There was nothing blocking the window on the inside so he jumped in and landed without making any noise. He took a brief look around and spotted the door to the room and headed toward it.

He opened the door and headed down a long dark hall way. He was quiet, barely breathing to make sure his presence wasn't known too soon. Suddenly, there was light at the end of his path. He slowly approached it and found himself at the top of a stair case with a wide open space below. His mark was standing right in the middle of the open room with one guard sitting at a desk.

"Wow, that must be the guy," He thought to himself. "He's small, this shouldn't take long."

Ichigo prepared himself to jump below until Shishio Makoto looked up directly at him.

"_What the hell?"_ Ichigo thought.

The man stood up and pushed his chair in. His blood shot eyes looked directly at Ichigo.

"Well, if you came here to kill me, can you speed up the process? I left that window open on purpose you know?" Shishio Makoto said evilly.

"Bastard," Ichigo mumbled to himself as he jumped down to the floor his mark was on.

"Just as I thought, you are skilled. But before I let you have free rain on me, you'll have to get through my body guard first." Makoto said pointing to his guard. The guard was also covered wearing an outfit similar to Ichigo's, with their face covered.

The guard flew at Ichigo with full force and a sword. Ichigo unsheathed his sword and blocked the attack with ease. He came down on the guard hard slashing left and right with out mercy. The guard was hardly able to keep up.

Ichigo made another slash and injured the guards arm.

"_You're wide open!"_ Ichigo yelled to himself as he prepared the finishing blow. He had the guard cornered.

He hurled his sword toward the guard's head. He missed. His sword hit the wall and grazed the guard's check. The guard's mask slowly fell off as a result of the tear.

"_What the fuck? Rukia?"_ Ichigo thought to himself.

_**BANG!**_

"_Shit, I was wide open…."_ Ichigo said to himself as he hunched over and felt his side. He was covered in blood. He turned to see where the bullet came from. It was the mark. He hired a female guard on purpose.

Ichigo continued to stare at Shishio Makoto. Makoto just chuckled and threw his gun back on the desk.

"Don't look so defeated, even though you have been. Kuchiki dear your job is done! Guards come in. Bring my assailant over here!" he yelled.

Rukia looked confused. A hit man? She was never told anything like this.

"What's going on? That guy isn't some typical yakuza thug, he is a _real_ assassin! He seriously tried to kill me!" she yelled.

Makoto laughed, "Yes and he almost succeeded. But if this is who I think it is, he would never kill an innocent, isn't that right, Mr. Kurosaki?"

"Kurosaki?!" Rukia added alarmed.

Makoto smiled evilly, "Hurry up and bring him over here."

The guards did as they were told. They pulled Ichigo to face Makoto. He looked Ichigo straight in the eyes then pulled his mask off.

"Ha! Just as I thought; little Kurosaki Ichigo trying to do a man's job."

"Fuck you…" Ichigo yelled spitting out a little blood.

Rukia stared at Ichigo in awe. She didn't say anything. She figured Ichigo was not going to make eye contact with her to keep her safe. But what the hell was he doing here? How long has he been killing people for a living?

Makoto continued smiling at Ichigo. "You know, I thought this would be harder, But oh well, a job is a job."

"A job?" Ichigo asked confused.

"Yes, you are my job…I put the hit out on myself to get you to come to me."

Ichigo eyes went wide with shock.

"I can't believe you didn't guess. You see I have a boss like many people do and he wants you dead. How do you think you got a mile within our spot with no problems?"

"Asshole…what makes you think you've got me?" Ichigo said huskily.

"Well, being held on the ground by 3 men and looking up at me coughing blood gave me a small hint," he said laughing.

"I always finish my job…" Ichigo said, stopping Makoto's laughter.

"I see…"

Ichigo fell to the floor and did a spinning kick knocking all three of the men that was holding him out. Makoto tried too late to take out his sword. Ichigo was already in his face. With one punch he took him to the ground and knocked the man's sword away.

Ichigo walked over and picked Makoto's sword up. He walked slowly back over to Makoto who was struggling to stand after the massive punch.

"What are you doing stop him!! This is what you're paid for!!" Makoto yelled to Rukia as he tried to lift himself up.

Rukia stood, still in shock of the whole ordeal. She was not about to help that monster, but even if she wanted to she couldn't. She was frozen, unable to move.

"Looks like it was your boss that sent the boy to do a man's job," Ichigo said as he raised the sword above his head.

Makoto could do nothing but look in horror as the sword fell upon him. Ichigo swung the sword down fast and hard. Makoto's head was dislodged from his body. The blood squirted onto Ichigo's face and all the way over to Rukia's feet. Makoto's lifeless body fell to the floor.

Rukia stood there shocked. Ichigo, her Ichigo, just killed a man right in front of her. What the hell was going on?

Just when Ichigo was about to turn and face Rukia, someone in the back round began clapping, loudly and slowly entered into the light.

"Bravo, Bravo. You are much better than I thought. Makoto was a very skilled swordsman and you took him out with ease." The man began.

Ichigo got an eerie feeling as the man approached him. Something wasn't right.

"Who are you?" Ichigo asked on guard.

"Who am I? Your father really hasn't told you anything, has he?" The man began, "Do you even know that your 22nd year is coming up?"

"_22__nd__ year_?" Rukia repeated in her head.

Ichigo stood in shock. What does he know about his family?

"What the hell do you know about it?" Ichigo shot back.

The man came up to Ichigo and stood directly in front of him. Ichigo stood unyielding in front of the man. The man was a bit taller than he was, but not much. He was wearing glasses and he had on a black suit.

"I'll ask you again, who are-" Ichigo was cut off by the man ripping his shirt. The markings on his right arm were now exposed. "What the hell?"

"Just as I thought, you are the chosen one, but it's only natural; you are your father's son."

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Ichigo demanded.

"That is for your father to tell you, I have but one goal…"

The man removed a piece of clothing from his right arm to reveal similar markings.

"You have not yet reached your 22nd year, but this challenge will still hold."

The man took Ichigo's arm and grabbed it. Both their markings began to glow and changed form.

"What the hell are you doing?" Ichigo yelled as Azien stood firm.

The markings began to make actual shapes and grew larger. Ichigo's turned red and into lines of fire, while the other man's turned black with circles of stones. The markings settled on their owners in black like tattoos, but still holding their new shapes of fire and stone.

Ichigo was out of breath after the ordeal.

"What the fuck was that?" He yelled out of breath pulling away from Aizen.

"That was a challenge my dear friend. And the day after your 22nd year, you'll have to honor it as the chosen one of your clan. Remember the name Aizen Sosuke, for it will be the name of the man who kills you. Take him back to his apartment."

"What the-" Ichigo started, but he was knocked out from behind by one of the guards.

They carried him off, and Rukia still stood still in awe. Aizen turned to address her.

"You will be paid for the full two weeks young lady," Aizen started, starling Rukia, "The money should be in your account in the morning. You can leave."

Rukia was still shocked she didn't know what to say. "Umm, thank you." She said a little uneasy as she ran through the front door.

"Po' Makoto, there was no way he'd be able to kill Kurosaki, but you knew that didn't you…" A tall white haired man asked from the back as he eyed Makoto's corpse.

Aizen turned to see his partner Ichimaru Gin approaching him. He smiled lightly and turned to face him fully.

"Makoto was an ends to a mean. It is rather disappointing he didn't make it, but our goal was met." Aizen said indifferently.

Gin continued to have a smile on his face as he walked over to Makoto and kicked his head closer to his body. He stopped for a moment and looked at Aizen again.

"Aizen do you think that was a good idea, letting that girl go?" Gin asked.

"Gin, what could she possibly do to me?" Azien asked with a grin.

"Humm…" was Gin's only response.

* * *

As if out of no where, it began to rain. Clouds filed the sky and water kept pouring uncontrollably. The stars were no longer bright in the sky. There was only darkness.

"_This can't be happening. Ichigo, why did you keep something like this from me?"_ Rukia thought, "_Everything that man said, is it true?"_

Rukia made a fast, ruff turn to the right as she sped down the street. She was heading in the exact opposite direction of her home, not that she cared. There was only one person on her mind, one place she needed to get to.

"_Ichigo…"_

She continued running as swift as possible until she saw Ichigo's apartment building. She jogged up to the door and stood there for a brief moment. She looked up to see if any lights were on in Ichigo's apartment, but there weren't.

"_I hope he isn't hurt badly…"_Rukia thought as she ran into the building and to the elevator.

The elevator took forever to come to her and took even longer to take her up to Ichigo's floor. At one point she swore she would have gotten to the 25th floor quicker on foot. She continued looking at the elevator light up at each floor. She was shaking with anticipation and worry. Had it not been raining, she would have been sweating instead of soaking wet. She needed to get to Ichigo now, not later.

21….22…23…24….25

The elevator doors opened up. Ichigo was but a few feet away from her, but yet, she hesitated.

"_Come on Rukia, we have to make sure he's ok_," she told herself.

She recomposed herself and turned down the hall, walking quickly, not running as she was before. It didn't take her long to get to Ichigo's door; she found herself standing before it within seconds of exiting the elevator.

She breathed out heavily She cautiously raised her hand to knock at the door and pulled back. She decided to check to see if the door was open first. She walked through this door unannounced a million times before. What was different now?

"Only everything…"she mumbled answering herself.

She turned the door knob and quickly flung the door open. She immediately heard a gun cook.

"ICHIGO YOU IDIOT IT'S ME!" she yelled at the top of her lungs.

She stepped inside further and she heard the gun being placed down.

"The gun was only a scare tactic, I've been out of bullets for a while," he said quietly with a hint of anger in his voice.

Rukia continued approaching the living room, and to the couch were Ichigo was sitting. On the way she turned on the light.

"Jeez Rukia!" Ichigo said, shielding his eyes from the light.

Rukia gasped once the lights turned on. She saw in front of her man covered in blood and it was all over the floor and the couch.

"Rukia don't worry-"

"Don't worry?! You're bleeding all over the place!" she said as she ran to the kitchen and began looking for a towel and some antiseptic.

"Rukia-" he tried to begin again.

Before he could get out another word Rukia was already back with the towel and antiseptic in hand. She quickly began wiping the wound on his face.

"Rukia-" Ichigo said again this time taking her hand away from his face.

"Ichigo what are you doing? This is an awful…" she began, but as she spoke the wound was slowly but surly healing it self at an alarming rate; faster than any human for sure. She could see each layer of skin fixing the injury from the top to bottom. The wound would be healed within an hour at the rate it was going.

She looked at Ichigo with confused eyes and took her towel again and lifted up his shirt to where the bullet wound was. She carefully wiped all the blood away and found that this wound was healing itself in the same way.

She looked at Ichigo again, still a little shocked. Surprising Ichigo, she took his shirt completely off and took it to his laundry basket. She went into the closet and got a few sheets and brought them back to the couch. She took the towel she had for Ichigo's wound and cleaned up the floor. When she was done she took the sheets and began covering the couch, until she got to where Ichigo was.

She looked at him for a second, just staring. Then suddenly with all her might, she pushed him off the couch.

"RUKIA, WHAT THE HELL?" Ichigo yelled.

Rukia paid him no attention and continued covering the couch.

"There, now you can sit down," she began, "now, tell me what the fuck is going on?"

Ichigo sat on the floor dazed for a few more moments before he stood. He slowly got up and took a seat on the couch, Rukia followed.

"This is not the conversation I intended having with you tonight," Ichigo said trying to lighten the mood.

"I know what you mean. I had no idea at work today I would see you killing a man….with a sword." Rukia said sternly.

"Look Rukia-"

"Don't "look Rukia" me! First of all you were reckless; you didn't use your head you could have gotten killed-"

"You're critiquing my combat skills?!" Ichigo yelled out.

Rukia paused for a moment and looked at the ground.

"You put yourself in danger; you left yourself wide open….because of me." She said quietly.

Ichigo sat still for a moment. It was true. Had it been anyone else he wouldn't have reacted in the same way. He was surprised and worried for her well being at the same time. He wasn't thinking about himself at all. But he wasn't ready to admit that.

"Rukia, I was just shocked to see you there. And wait, what the hell were you doing there?" he asked abruptly.

Rukia stood at this question.

"What do you mean what was _I_ doing there. _I _am a professional body guard. _I_ was hired for a job. _You_ on the other hand CHOPPED SOMEONE'S HEAD OFF!!" Rukia yelled at the top of her lungs.

"You know I could just call the police if you want me to get arrested…" Ichigo said coolly.

"ICHIGO!!"

Ichigo sighed. This was not the time to joke; he was going to have to tell her everything. He looked at her with a blank expression. The last thing he wanted to do was get Rukia involved in his chaotic life, and he managed to do it in less than 24 hours from the first moment they kissed.

He stood up slowly and approached Rukia. He stood directly in front of her, knelt down and kissed her softly. Rukia looked up at him confused. He placed a hand on her shoulder and guided her back down to the couch and sat down next to her.

"Rukia, there's something I need to-"

**_KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK_**

Ichigo stopped midsentence as someone continued knocking loudly at his door.

"Who the hell-" Ichigo started as the knocks continued, "I'll be right back Rukia."

Ichigo angrily stood up and went to his door. He cautiously looked through his pep hole and no one was there. He slowly opened his door and stuck his head out only to be met with a kick.

"ICHIGOOOOO!" a man yelled as he followed through with his kick into the apartment.

"DAD WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!!" Ichigo yelled as he got off the floor.

Ichigo's father paid no attention to him. He was already absorbed into something more interesting.

"ICHIGO, YOU'VE BECOME A MAN!!" He yelled gleefully.

Ichigo ran up to his father and punched him.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT OLD MAN??" Ichigo asked.

Once again the elder Kurosaki didn't pay attention to his son. He had already crawled around to the front of the couch and approached Rukia.

"Kurosaki Isshin here! Nice to meet you….are you going to marry my son?" he asked with bright eyes.

Rukia and Ichigo turned beat red; avoiding eye contact for a moment. Ichigo coughed and decided to change the subject.

"What are you doing here…?" Ichigo asked slowly.

A man with a hat walked in through Ichigo's open door. Rukia stood still; watching as everything happened. The man walked up to Ichigo and grabbed his right arm.

"Urahara?" Ichigo asked.

Urahara just stared at the marking and lifted it up higher to take a look at it. He dropped Ichigo's arm and stared at Ichigo's Father.

Isshin dropped his head a little lower.

"So it is true." Isshin said slowly.

Ichigo was getting upset. He backed away from Urahara and looked at him and his father angrily.

"FIRST THAT AIZEN GUY, NOW YOU TWO! WHAT'S TRUE?? WHAT ARE YOU GUYS TALKING ABOUT?" he demanded.

Just as he yelled out, Ishida Uryuu and another man followed close behind. Ichigo calmed down a little. What was everyone doing here?

"Mr. Ishida, you're here too? What's going-" Ichigo tried to say, but he stopped as Uryuu's father glared at him.

Ishida Ryuken walked around to his son's right side, his glare never left Ichigo.

"This is why we are here, Kurosaki Ichigo." Ryuken said as he revealed Ishida's right arm.

Uryuu had a tattoo similar to Ichigo's except it was of water.

Urahara stood in the middle of the room and tilted his hat. Everyone's eyes were locked on Urahara. The room was in complete silence.

"So it has begun……."

* * *

**A/N**: WOW!! What a crazy day! I bet no one saw that coming. It's not just a simple assassin fic! Hope you guys liked the twist. There is more to come! And don't forget to **_REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!_**! It helps me write!!

Next Chapter: A Hidden Truth Within Lies


	4. A Hidden Truth Lies Within

Sorry for the wait! Next chapter:

Chapter 4: A Hidden Truth Lies Within

* * *

Rain continued to fall as a small group of people stood in a university apartment. All eyes were to the center of the room on one man. He would have been standing tall if it wasn't for his head; it was slightly drooped; causing his hat to hide any emotion that was on his face.

The light was dim in the room; only one lamp was turned on, though no one noticed or cared. The majority of the group continued to stare at the man, waiting for him to continue, waiting to find out what was going on. The two most concerned were Ichigo and Uryuu of course. They had discussed the holes in their parents' stories many times, and often shrugged them away, but now, with the answers so close… their glares never left Urahara.

Rukia on the other hand was hoping he didn't go on. Something was eating at her on the inside, telling her that something bad was going to come of this. She couldn't help but think it was all her fault. Whatever it is Ichigo was caught up in, was because of her. Of all the jobs in the world, they had to both be assigned to this one, with that man; Aizen. What were the chances of this happening? Why did fate choose to be so cruel to her, always taking away those close to her…

"So you gonna spit it out or not?" Ichigo demanded, knocking everyone out of their stupor.

Everyone looked up, surprised for a moment. Urahara looked up as if he was about to speak, but it was the elder Ishida to answer Ichigo first.

"So eager to learn of the mess you caused? Typical Kurosaki…you are your father's son." he began.

The agitation on Ichigo's face that no one thought could get any worst, did. The whole room could feel it. It was time to stop beating around the bush.

"Everyone, take a seat," Urahara began, "You'll all need it after I'm done…close the door too, Uryuu."

Uryuu walked over to the door as Ichigo went to his kitchen to get some stools. He only had one couch, enough room for about three people.

Rukia and Uryuu were the only two to sit on the couch, Isshin and Ryuken took a stool, Ichigo leaned up against the couch next to Rukia and Urahara remained standing.

Rukia took a brief moment to look up at Ichigo. He didn't even look back at her. He was wearing "that look". She hated that look, his serious look. His eyebrows were furrowed, his face holding that scowl. She sighed and turned her attention back to the man standing in front of her. Words could not describe how she hated that look; the look even she, with their long history, could do so very little to change.

Urahara turned, facing away from the group as he began speaking.

"Ichigo and Uryuu…" he began.

Everyone's ears perked up, eyes glowing with anticipation.

"Everything you know about yourselves is a lie as well as the truth. We are bounty hunters; we kill for money, but that's not the only reason… Ichigo, why did you choose Makoto as your mark?"

All turned to Ichigo. He straightened up a little as he answered.

"The money was good, and I always like a challenge," he began.

"And you got that feeling, correct?" Urahara asked.

"Yeah, big time, what's your point?" Ichigo responded.

"Do you know what that feeling is?" Urahara asked. Ichigo looked at him, and shrugged. He had a feeling whatever he thought was wrong.

Urahara turned to the side and opened his fan, it slightly covered his face.

"That feeling is part of a power that has been passed on to you from birth. It is a power your parents and I received long ago."

Ichigo and Ishida observed Urahara closely; eager to know where the conversation was going.

"Some time ago, we all became aware of that "feeling" as we came around certain people. We realized it was a representation of the evil within men."

"The stronger the feeling is, represents the suffering they have or will cause others. We don't go after just any one for a hit. We kill truly evil men." Urahara closed his fan and turned slightly to the right. He got a small glimpse of Ichigo and Ishida before he continued.

"No one is born innocent in this world, but for any man to have a trace of evilness, that we can sense, signifies a chance for pure evil to raise again." He added.

Ichigo looked up at this remark. He stood slowly and turned to face Urahara.

"That Aizen guy… the feeling I got when he was close to me…" Ichigo started.

"Aizen, used to be on our side, but something changed him. He began trailing down the same path as those we defeated…." Urahara answered.

Ishida was astounded. How could a man that fought along side his father in the past be filled with enough evil to disturb Ichigo? What was this Aizen guys' purpose? What was he planning? Ishida slowly looked down to his marking. Immediately following his action, Ichigo asked the very question that was on his mind.

"What's with these markings? Why did they change shape when he challenged me?" Ichigo asked.

Urahara, Isshin, and Ryuken raised up their shirt sleeves to reveal markings similar to his and Uryuu's. But there were slight differences in the shape, and theirs were colored.

"Our shapes," Urahara began," represent a chosen man or woman whose power have been passed on. The color represents a man of 22 years or older being released."

"Released?" Ichigo and Uryuu asked.

"At the age of 22 your powers are matured. You will age slower and your powers are completely awaked; awaiting to be released. Once you are released you will be faster, stronger, and have the ability to jump even further distances than you already can." Urahara concluded.

"Why did he challenge me?" Ichigo asked again.

"A female has to awaken you. Any female with our power can awaken you. But just as there are few chosen men, there are fewer chosen women. The stronger the women, the stronger your release will be, thus the stronger you will be. Aizen has challenged you for that woman. But her presence won't be known until all 5 chosen men have turned 22. So Aizen did miscalculate a bit. His challenge can't be upheld until Ishida turns 22. He has the latest birthday."

Everyone looked at Urahara in awe. Ichigo knew there was something up with his 22nd birthday, but he never could have imagined this.

"There are 4 chosen men and 2 women…"

"You all never could get to the point…." A voice said from behind the group cutting Urahara off.

Everyone turned to see a tall shadow walking towards them.

"Ni-sama?" Rukia yelled out.

"Ahh, Kuchiki Byakuya, didn't think you were coming," Urahara said slightly smiling.

"I couldn't let you tell my sister what was going on. She doesn't need to hear this." Byakuya said.

"Every female in our clan should hear this information, especially now, since we have a formal challenge on our hands" Urahara answered.

Ichigo and Ishida turned to Rukia in shock. She was apart of this too?

Before Ichigo could speak, Byakuya stepped further into the room glaring at Urahara.

"My sister is adopted. I may have trained her as if she was apart of the clan, but she has no birth rights. Therefore she cannot be chosen; you know this." Byakuya said harshly eyeing Urahara.

"I see," was Urahara's only reply as he lifted his fan up.

Rukia lowered her head a bit. She hated not being apart of a family, she wanted to belong. The only reason she was adopted by Byakuya was because of her late sister. And now, with everything that is happening, she was losing Ichigo too.

Ichigo caught Rukia's eyes losing their glow. He wanted to do something to comfort her, but how could he. It was just this morning he kissed her for the first time. They didn't even get a chance to talk and now this. Maybe he was right. With his life, he was not meant to be with Rukia. He can't put her in harms way.

"A meeting of the strongest men and potentials for the females still needs to be held nonetheless." Ryuken said.

The elder men all nodded in agreement.

"Who are the chosen men? And who are the female candidates?" Ishida asked.

Byakuya spoke up first answering Ishida, "The chosen men are Kurosaki Ichigo, Ishida Uryuu, Abarai Renji, and Madarame Ikkaku. Female candidates are Inoue Orihime, Matsumoto Rangiku, Hinamori Momo, and Arisawa Tatsuki."

"Inoue too…" Ichigo whispered to himself.

"Wait, why is Aizen not in the group of chosen men?" Ishida asked.

Isshin answered him, with a hint of sorrow in his voice. "Aizen is not apart of your group. He was apart of ours."

Ichigo looked at his father, eagerly waiting for him to finish.

"He was not able to find a chosen woman to awaken him. Rather than being awakened by a normal woman, he chose to wait for the next generation and take one of their chosen," Isshin finished.

No more was said for some time. Everyone was soaking in the new information, but one thing was clear; they couldn't let Aizen get near these girls. If he possessed as much evil as everyone thought, a war between good and evil could erupt on this small college town.

Byakuya looked at everyone distastefully. He had had enough of their poor explanations and lack of information.

"Let's go Rukia," he said as he walked toward the door.

"But nii-sama,"

"Rukia…" Byakuya said rather coldly, not even turning around to face her.

She slowly stood up and followed her brother. She knew he was only trying to protect her, but he never listened to her opinion.

Ichigo watched as Rukia left. She didn't even look at him, but he couldn't blame her. This was unbelievable, so much had happened. It was a day to remember for sure; from beginning to end.

"You two get some sleep tonight," Urahara said speaking to Ichigo and Uryuu, "Their will be much to tell at the meeting tomorrow."

"You're having it tomorrow?" Ishida asked a little shocked.

"Better sooner than later!" Isshin added sounding a little more cheerful.

"_Idiot…_" Ichigo mumbled to himself. His father was a moron, but hearing that cheerful voice return was a relief. He was not used to his father being serious. He couldn't recall a single moment when his father was so upset when discussing an adversary. It bothered Ichigo, a lot.

The older men began to file out, just as the Kuchiki's had a few moments earlier. The older Ishida paused at the door.

"Uryuu, are you coming?" he asked.

"I think I'll crash with Kurosaki tonight," he answered.

His father nodded, and closed the door behind him leaving the two alone.

Ishida remained on the couch, still in deep thought.

"I just love how you invited yourself to stay at my place…" Ichigo started as he plopped down on the couch next to Ishida.

"You had something more important than discussing the possible end of the world?" Ishida asked finally being more relaxed with their parents gone.

"Not really," Ichigo answered looking up at the ceiling, debating whether or not talking to Rukia was more important than talking about this stuff.

"Kurosaki!"

"What? Nothing is more important, damn it!"

"Your idiocy astounds me more and more everyday…"

"Why are you at my house again?" Ichigo said eying Ishida side ways.

"You know they still didn't tell us everything right?" Ishida asked.

"Yeah, I know. With every answer they gave, I had two more questions. And this Aizen guy; why wait so long, why now?"

"Maybe he wasn't strong enough to beat our parents back then. I mean, without a chosen female."

"Maybe. But with this threat why wouldn't our dad's tell us sooner?" Ichigo asked, still thinking about the possibilities.

"More than likely to prevent Aizen wanna-be's." Ishida concluded.

They both slouched on the couch, lost in their thought for a moment. Ichigo leaned off to the right and Ishida off to the left, both with similar scowls on their face. They looked more like brothers for a moment.

"Ichigo,"

"What?"

"You should probably cool things off with Rukia. You don't want her to get hurt."

"That's the last thing I want. It's just things are a little different" Ichigo said as he sighed and stood up.

"Different how? And where are you going?"

"I kissed her this morning."

"Wow," Ishida said a little surprised, "The timing sucks, but it was just a kiss, she should understand, especially with-"

"It wasn't just a kiss…"

"Ichigo, are you telling me you and Rukia, I mean right before class…"

"NO!" Ichigo said a little flushed, "It didn't go that far, but…it was not just a kiss."

Ishida felt bad for him. Ichigo never really dated because of the whole "killing people" job. Rukia was the only girl he was ever really close to. It was silly to say that a kiss between the two of them was only a kiss. That kiss must have meant the world to them both.

"What are you going to do?" He asked with a little pity in his voice.

"I'm going to see if I can talk to her," He said as he went to grab a jacket and his shoes.

"Good luck" was all Ishida could say as he watched he friend walk out the door. He only wished he could say more, but there was not more he could do. No encouraging words could help Ichigo right now.

* * *

On the other end of campus, Rukia reached for the door to her dorm and showed her brother inside.

She reached for a light and flipped the switch. The light revealed an immaculate dorm. It was completely clean, and every inch of furniture looked almost brand new.

"I am impressed that you've managed to keep your home up with all you school work and body guard jobs," He began, "Either that or you're hardly here…."

As he finished that sentence Rukia turned her head to escape his glare. She decided it best to ignore the statement.

"Would you like some thing to drink nii-sama?" She asked headed for the kitchen.

Byakuya didn't answer, but he followed her. Rukia reached to get a glass out of the cupboard. She turned on the faucet and quickly brought the glass to the sink and dropped the cup. It broke in half.

"I'm sorry nii-sama! I'll get another glass." She said as she began picking up the large pieces of broken glass.

Byakuya watched as his sister slowly picked up the glass.

"Is there something bothering you, Rukia?" he asked.

"No, I'm fine. Don't worry about me." She answered.

Byakuya remained silent, but Rukia could feel his eyes burning in her back. She didn't want to tell him what was wrong; she already knew what he was going to say. But she couldn't lie either.

"Nii-sama, why did you lie about me back at Ichigo's?"

Byakuya was surprised at the question; he expected it to be something regarding that boy, not this.

"I do not lie. But the information surrounding you and your sister is not something to hand out freely."

"But nii-sama, I could have helped…"

"No. This is not up for discussion. Nothing good will come of this, just like before…"

Rukia was disturbed by his words. "That is not the same. Ichigo is not…"

"Rukia, the answer is no. And with that I shall take my leave. I will send someone to check on you in the morning."

He left closing the door behind him and without Rukia saying another word

"He's wrong…." She whispered to herself.

She continued cleaning up the glass in the sink, picking up the small pieces now. She carefully put them into her hand and walked over to her trash bin. She sprinkled the glass crystals in the bag and gently brushed any remaining fragments with her opposite hand.

She sighed as she walked through her apartment. She smiled a bit as she reflected upon some of her brother's words. He was right about one thing: she was never in this dorm room.

She continued pacing the layout of her dorm; she couldn't even remember the last time she slept here. One month ago, no maybe two months ago she came by for a pair of pants, but she didn't sleep here. She was always with Ichigo.

She walked slowly over to her balcony door and opened it. She stepped outside and took in a breath of fresh air. After everything that happened, what was going to become of her and Ichigo?

She started staring out into the campus, wondering what the future held for her. Suddenly a dark figure appeared at the other end of her balcony. She immediately ran up to it and kicked it.

"Ow! What the hell did you do that for?"

Rukia blinked twice before she finally realized who it was.

"ICHIGO? What do you mean what did I do that for? What the hell are _you_ doing up here? How did you get up here?" she yelled back.

"I jumped…" he said smirking.

"You jumped?" she questioned again.

"Yeah, I figured what the hell, since the cats already out the bag," he said as he sat on top of the balcony rail.

"I'm seven stories up, you can't be that good." Rukia smirked.

Ichigo frowned, and then smirked back at her. "No I'm not…yet."

Rukia rolled her eyes as he continued, "I can only jump one story at a time. And this way was a lot safer than chancing running into your brother."

"I guess that part of your explanation makes sense."

The two sat silent for a moment. Their greeting was a normal one, for the most part anyways, and it almost made them forget the problem at hand.

"Hey Rukia, you know why I came right?"

Rukia looked over at Ichigo's pitiful face and smiled.

"You can't fool me Kurosaki." She said happily.

"What are you talking about?" Ichigo yelled trying to keep a straight face, "I'm here to discuss something very important!"

"Like what?"

"Like, we should cool it off, for your safety…."

"And…" Rukia said stepping closer to him.

"Your brother would make this very difficult for us…"

"And…"

"OK, FINE, "Ichigo said, finally running out of ideas being caught in the spotlight, "I was going to fake being sad for a while, and then ask if it's ok that we sneak around. I don't think this Aizen guy has anything to do with our relationship."

"Relationship?" Rukia asked a little shocked. Did he just say that….out loud?

Ichigo blushed a bit; he shocked himself. He didn't know what else to call what they were about to start.

"Yeah, I guess that's what we'll call it. Unless you want to call it an affair," he said chuckling.

Rukia did not look amused, which only made Ichigo chuckle even more. He jumped off the rail and embraced Rukia. She was surprised at first but enjoyed the hug. She felt so warm in his arms. This feeling was different from this morning. It was something she couldn't put her finger on.

"Hey you, how about I call you mine for now. Until we figure out everything else I mean." He said playfully.

"Call me yours?" she repeated smiling, "What are we cave people?"

Ichigo smiled that smile he only gave to her and she blushed. She couldn't help it and he knew it.

"Alright then, how about you belong to me, and I will never let anyone hurt you." He said with a mild tone of seriousness.

"Isn't that the same thing as before with different words?" Rukia asked still smiling.

"Yeah, but I thought the hole protecting you thing would make it better," he joked.

"You know what, it does," she said as she buried her head into his chest, "I belong to Ichigo, at least until we find out what else to call this."

"Well that settles it; no matter what happens with this Aizen guy or these releases, you belong to me."

Ichigo looked down to Rukia and lifted her face away from his chest with his hand. He bent down as he held her face and kissed her softly on the lips. Somehow this kiss was almost better than the first. It was a little sweeter.

Rukia pulled away slowly and stared up in his eyes.

"You know we still have more to talk about, especially after this meeting." Rukia started.

"Yeah I know. I will have to train a lot more too. But don't worry. We'll be alright." He kissed her once more before releasing her and turning to leave, "I'll call you in the morning."

"Where are you going?"

"I have great hearing, I heard your brother say someone would be coming by in the morning, I'm not sticking around for that" He smirked, "Unless of course you wanna..."

"BYE ICHIGO!" she yelled pushing him off the ledge. To her surprise he didn't grab for the ledge below him and kept falling. He landed on his feet 7 stories down.

"I thought you weren't that good yet?" She yelled.

"I said I can't jump that high yet, but I always land on my feet, darling." He yelled up with a wink and bowed.

The two laughed and enjoyed their moment before it was interrupted.

"GET IN THE SACK WITH HER OR GO HOME! PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SLEEP!" a random college student yelled.

Rukia and Ichigo laughed. College was funny sometimes.

"Goodnight Ichigo." Rukia yelled down and returned to her room.

"Goodnight, Rukia." He said quietly.

"GO HOME ICHIGO!" the random college student yelled again.

"DON'T MAKE ME COME UP THERE AND KNOCK THE SHIT OUTTA YA!" Ichigo yelled back as he headed for home.

Rukia stood behind her curtain laughing at the whole ordeal. She was glad Ichigo decided to work on whatever relationship they were starting. She would miss him (though never admit that to him) if they had to separate. She didn't know what was about to happen, but somehow she knew as long as she had Ichigo, everything would be ok.

She walked to her bath room and turned the water on to start her shower. She removed her clothes and looked at herself in the mirror. She turned to get a side view of herself, and she stared at her back, specifically the markings on lower back. She looked into her own eyes in the mirror thinking about her markings, which resembled a heart with several daggers going in them. There used to be just a heart, and the daggers began to appear one by one.

"There's a new one," Rukia said as she noticed the new dagger, "That's odd it's not in the heart like the rest; it's just surrounding the outside."

Rukia stared at the new dagger, wondering what it could mean.

"Why is Ni-sama so worried about this? And why can no one know… that I am chosen."

* * *

_**Author note:**_ Sorry for the wait! I hope you guys liked it. I know it was long. And I shoulda warned about the slight fluffiness, but hey, it's a nice surprise. And yes, Rukia is chosen! But what's up with the daggers…that can't be good! We'll see what happens at this meeting! And yeah, I think some IchiRuki make-out time is coming, they deserve it!

And don't forget to REVIEW!

Next Chapter: The Trick of Normality


	5. The Trick of Normality

Chapter 5: The Trick of Normality

* * *

_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

"What the… oh yeah," a small young woman said to herself as she rolled over and hit the snooze button.

She hit her alarm a little too hard and knocked it off her nightstand. She shot right up in her bed with a small "lovely freaking morning" mumbling from her mouth. She tossed her covers off her and walked over to her alarm clock that sounded as if it was dying.

_Beeeeep…._

She pressed the button to turn the alarm completely off and it still continued to make a pathetic beep/humming noise. She turned it over and looked at the machine side ways and finally decided there was no saving her college alarm clock of 3 years.

"Well, that's the end of this…" She said as she pulled the plug out of the walk. She gave a small sigh and walked over to her trash and threw the item away. It was one of the very few presents she had received from a friend.

"Renji bought me that," she said to herself smiling, "I haven't seen him in ages, I wonder if Ichigo has-"

She immediately lost her train of thought once she spoke of Ichigo. Everything that happened last night was so surreal. Did it really happen? Is Ichigo really apart of this "chosen" group? Was she?

_KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK_

"_Who in the world?"_ she thought to herself as jogged to the door in her pj's.

Upon reaching the door, she stood on her tip-toes to see through the peep hole only to find it being covered by someone's hand on the other side. She sighed and decided to just open the door. It could only be one person.

"RUKIA! Sorry I knocked so loud, I didn't think you would be up!" a woman proclaimed loudly as she pranced through the front door.

"What do you know, it's Rangiku." Rukia said plainly.

The woman looked at her friend and sighed, "Well excuse me for not being Ichigo!"

Rukia turned a little red and tried to retort but was cut off by 1 finger being placed on her lips.

"Saying his name gets you every time." Rangiku said with a wink as Rukia frowned. "Now, for the reason I'm here…"

Rangiku returned to the door and stepped outside briefly, leaving Rukia with a puzzled look on her face. She returned a few moments later with her hands full of books. She dropped them on the floor in front of Rukia.

"What the hell is-"

"Hold that thought," Rangiku said as she went outside again and returned with yet another pile of books and placed them in front of Rukia.

"Rangiku, what-"

"Keep holding..." she said with a smile that caused Rukia to frown once again.

She returned once again with a load of books and slammed them in front of Rukia this time and leaned up against the stack.

"Now, what were you saying?"

"RANGIKU WHAT THE HELL IS THIIS?" Rukia yelled. "THIS IS A MESS!"

"Calm down! This is not a mess. Its research." She said politely batting her eyelashes.

"Research?"

"Yeah, research. Word gets around fast when the chosen one is challenged." She said.

"Ah, so you know about that already."

"Yeah, but I'm a little sketchy on the details…"

"I'll fill you in later, first, what is this stuff for?"

"I got it from you brother's house this morning, and boy do I have a story for you!"

"My brother's house?"

_FLASHBACK_

It was dark around the Kuchiki mansion, and it would be easy to sneak in _if_ it wasn't so heavily guarded.

There were three men at the front door, 5 at the back, and 3 guys at each side of the house. If there was an entrance to get into the house without being caught, Matsumoto wished a sign would point to it.

"_Well, I have to get in there and get some intel… with everything that just went down, there has to be more answers_." She thought to herself.

She slowly crept to the back entrance. She figured it was the best place to sneak in undiscovered. As she walked over she began to unbutton her shirt (more than it was already) and was nearly completely exposed.

"Hello, Mr. Guard!" She said loud enough to get their attention.

"Hey! Miss, what are you doing here!?" One of the guards asked.

All three men approached her not wanting to take any chance, but the moment they reached her no one could say anything. They were all too engulfed in the sight before them.

"Oh three brave men come to save me! Well you see," Matsumoto began as she rubbed her chest, "My shirt won't button up and I can't walk around like this! I need a spare shirt!"

"You can have mine!!" All then men said happily at once.

"Oh thank you I'll change right away to save time…"

Matsumoto slowly took one of the jackets and set it on the floor, bending down ever so slowly. Next she unbuttoned the remainder of her shirt and slowly slid it off her body revealing more of her light pink see-through bra……

_CRASH!_

All three men were on the floor before they knew what happened to them.

"Men," she said as she put her shirt back on, "Byakuya has some dumb guards…"

She took the bodies back to their posts, leaned them against the wall, and entered the Kuchiki manor.

_END FLASHBACK_

"It was pretty easy after taking the guards out, "Matsumoto said finishing up her story, "But it was a little strange how the house and books weren't locked up securely…"

Rukia looked at her friend amazed. Not only did she sneak into the Kuchiki mansion, but she managed to get tons of information that they would need to know about being chosen.

"I can't believe you did all this," Rukia began, and suddenly gave Rangiku a sideways stare, "Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?"

"Hey! I have my moments." She said smiling, "Anyways, I read some of this stuff while I was driving and-"

"While you were driving?!"

"Hey, I can change clothes and apply make-up- why shouldn't I read too?"

"Dear god, continue…"

Rangiku smiled and rummaged through one of the stacks and pulled out what looked like the oldest book in the pile.

"Here, this one should interest you the most." Rangiku said as she handed the book to Rukia.

Rukia took the book and there was a symbol on the cover. There was dust all over the book, so she lightly brushed the book off so she could see what the marking was. She lifted the book a little closer to her face and at first she still couldn't make out what it was; it was so faded. She sighed and looked at Rangiku who implored for her to continued looking. Rukia sighed and took another glance. The second glance was all it took, and it hit her.

"Rangiku, this is… it can't be!"

"Bingo."

Rukia looked at her friend then back to the book in disbelief. She rubbed off more of the dirt and dust to reveal more and more of the symbol. She started to open the book up and turned to the first page.

_**KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK**_

Rukia and Rangiku gave each other one look and both knew exactly what to do. No one needed to see what they were looking into; especially since they shouldn't have these books to begin with.

"I'm coming, give me one sec!" Rukia yelled as she and Rangiku hid the books. Rukia figured it was one of her brothers' associates checking up on her; she couldn't let them know what she had.

_**KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK**_

"Coming!!" she yelled again out of breath.

_**KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK**_

"God who the hell is this…" Rukia whispered to Rangiku.

Instead of keeping the person at her door waiting any longer she jogged over to the door and began unlocking it. She peaked over her shoulder to see if Rangiku was done and saw a "thumbs up" from her friend. She opened the door.

"YOU!" Rukia said with wide eyes.

* * *

"Hey do you plan on getting up today or what?" a man said as he entered his friend's bedroom.

"Go away Ishida…"

Grumbling from under his blankets, Ichigo tried to hide himself from the light as much as possible by pulling his pillows under the covers with him and turning his back to the blinds (which were being opened by his so called friend).

"You are unbelievable! You're acting as if nothing happened yesterday!" Ishida yelled.

"Something happened yesterday?" Ichigo mumbled.

"ICHIGO!" Ishida yelled as he attempted pull the blankets off the bed.

Ichigo grumbled again and fought for his blanket. He pulled at the blanket with full force as did Ishida

"Ichigo, get up!"

"Gimmie my blanket damn it!"

Ichigo, now wide awake entered into a tug of war and a staring contest which lasted almost 5 minutes. The only thing that stopped the insanity was a slight ripping sound.

"Damn it," Ichigo sighed, "I quit, I'm up."

"Wow," Ishida said amazed," afraid of ripping your precious blanket?"

"No! It's just, Rukia would be pissed if she saw it. She bought that." Ichigo said with his voice trialing off toward the end of his sentence.

Ishida just looked at his friend and began to chuckle. Ichigo saw nothing funny and decided to jump into the shower and check the marks for the day. And despite what Ishida thought, he didn't forget about what happened yesterday, but still, he didn't want to get out of shape for whatever was to come. Besides, he still didn't have enough money to stock his inventory.

"Shit, I don't have time to buy any supplies. I wonder if those bastards even deposited the money…" Ichigo thought out loud as he walked toward the bathroom doors.

He logged into his computer system/mirror and began to get to work.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, agent 3472 signing in for duty."

"Voice confirmation, body and eye scan complete. Identity confirmed. Good morning Mr. Kurosaki." The mirror said.

"You know you could change your greeting every once in a while…." Ichigo grunted.

"That is not a problem sir, what would you like me to say?"

Ichigo looked up very surprised at his mirror, "Holy shit, you've been updated!"

"Yes, that is correct. System updates began sometime after you fell asleep last night for the entire company. It is needed to be completely prepared."

"Yeah I guess so… wait, how do you know what time I went to sleep!?"

"I've always been aware of everything that happens in this apartment. Now I can inform you instead of you checking, even though you don't care."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I DON"T CARE?"

"System logs show that you have never checked the status of your apartment since you moved in 3 years ago."

Ichigo looked at the mirror in disgust, "I don't think I'm going to like this new you.."

"I'm sure you'll get used to it."

Ichigo frowned for a moment. His computer was really mean! But suddenly something seamed very familiar about this meanness.

"Why do you sound so familiar?"

"The new updates are not only so that we can respond to you more efficiently, but also to give "human answers". This way you will understand me better."

"Well your "human responses" are pretty bitchy."

"Based off my analysis of the people you socialize with this type of attitude is most effective for you. Most of my data is from your interactions with Kuchiki Rukia."

"Well that explains it," Ichigo said smiling a bit, " I didn't know you analyzed Rukia, what do you think of her?"

"I don't have my own opinion, but I do have static's and habits logged. Would you like to know this information?"

"Yeah sure…" Ichigo said curiously.

"Kuchiki Rukia, known body guard for the Kuchiki clan for the last 3 years. Specializes in all known combat weapons, expert in Kido, expert in martial arts, became lethal at age 15, but she has never killed anyone. She has a 2% chance in defeating you in combat. 0% chance in killing you in combat, but that is only because I don't believe she would do it."

Ichigo looked up smiling, "Is that so, I thought you didn't think."

"That is not a thought. It's what I see to be true based on my records."

"I see."

"There is something about her you may want to know."

"What's that?"

"Ms. Kuchiki has a tattoo on her lower back, a heart with 4 daggers stabbed in it."

"Hey, that is interesting, you would think I would have noticed it yesterday morning." He said happily recalling the event, not even considering what the mirror was trying to hint at.

"Yes, one would think…." The mirror said sarcastically.

"Anyways," Ichigo said angrily, "What's my balance, I need to start stocking up my inventory."

"Account balance $30,019.11."

"Wow, those ass holes really deposited the money. Hey! What's up with me only having 19 bucks in my account before this?" Ichigo asked upset.

"You tend to eat a lot of take out sir. It's a very pricy habit of yours."

"That can't be the only reason!" he yelled annoyed.

"You also bought someone an early Christmas present."

Ichigo's face turned a little red. He had completely forgotten about the present he bought earlier that week for Rukia. The moment he laid his eyes on the item he knew it was for her. There was only one and he was so afraid someone else might buy the jewel, so he paid for it on the spot.

Ichigo looked back at the mirror and decided to change the subject; he didn't feel like giving her more data to "analyze".

"Oh yeah. Well, anyways, we have a little more than a year before Ishida's 22nd year and I want to be completely prepared at all times, especially the week of."

"Yes sir."

"My inventory is to be stocked at all times and I need to be informed whenever my funds cannot maintain this status. Also, inform me the moment I walk in the door if anyone, other than me, has entered my apartment and let me know if you find any useful information on this Aizen character."

"Yes sir, will there be anything else?"

"Yeah, search jobs, display jobs listed with USD value of $15,000 or more."

"Yes sir, 1 job found."

"Wow that was a lot faster…"

"Job: Kariya Kagetoki; $15,000 USD. Payers are a group of students studying martial arts. Their sensei was recently murdered."

"Well that explains that. I can feel this one too. He's mine."

"Job assigned. 50% of the funds have been transferred into your account. You have 2 days to complete the job. This job has also been red flagged; target is an expert swordsman."

"Figures. The teacher murdered at that school was too. Looks like I'll have another workout."

Ichigo was ready to sign off and jump into the shower now. He had been talking to his computer a little longer than a normal person would. Just as he was about to log off he remembered he didn't have any weapons.

"How long will it take to restock my inventory?" he asked.

"Three days."

"What luck, I guess I have to clean my sword off again."

Ichigo sighed and logged off the computer. He reached into the shower and started the water. He leaned against the sink behind him as he waited for the water to warm up.

"_It's like a normal day…despite everything that just happened yesterday_," Ichigo thought as he looked at his newly formed tattoo, "_I wonder, just what is really going on_."

* * *

A tall red headed man stood in front of Rukia with a big grin on his face. He wore a black suit and blue shirt underneath. That grin he had brought her back to a time she had nearly forgotten.

"YOU! What on earth are you doing here?" Rukia said as she jumped into the arms of the man in front of her.

"Easy there! You act like you haven't seen me in years!" he joked.

"You idiot! I haven't!" she said smiling.

Matsumoto emerged from the other room to find out what the commotion was.

"So they send you?" Matsumoto said disturbing the two as she walked toward them.

"Matsumoto! It's been a while." The man said surprised to see her.

"Abarai Renji, still Byakuya's "yes man,"" she said laughing as she greeted him with a hug as well.

"Whatever!" Renji yelled. "I wouldn't be here if you guys were staying out of trouble. Now what the hell were you guys moving around? It sounded like books."

Rukia and Matsumoto looked at each other, then back at Renji strangely.

"That's a pretty good guess. How did you know it was books?" Rukia asked.

Renji looked at the girls with a similar look of confusion. He just stared at them for a moment in disbelief before he signed.

"Did you guys forget about yesterday?" He said as he removed his jacket and rolled up his right sleeve.

Underneath reveled markings in the same spot as Ishida and Ichigo, except Renji's were of rock and stone.

"I am sorry. I can't believe I forgot… you are chosen. You could hear a pebble drop… just like Ichigo." Rukia said while staring at the markings.

"Don't compare me to that guy!" Renji yelled as he rolled his sleeves down with a scowl on his face.

"Oh gosh, why don't you guys get along? It's been at least 2 years. I mean Renji don't you think it's about time you get over the-"

"Stop, don't say another word Matsumoto…"

"But why can't I mention the-"

"We all agreed never to speak of it again. But I will get Ichigo back. Now, on to these books you guys were pushing around…"

"Oh, I'll get them," Rukia said as she ran into her bedroom, "You can help, but please don't tell Nii-sama."

"'Course not." Renji replied.

Rukia pulled out the first stack of books for them to look through, with the one she and Matsumoto were looking at when Renji arrived on top.

Rukia stopped the pile just before her friends. She gave a nod and everyone dug in. They each grabbed a book. Rukia of course grabbed the one on top.

"This is going to take a while isn't it?" Renji asked.

"Sure, especially with the other piles of books in Rukia's room!" Matsumoto said with a wink.

Renji sighed.

* * *

On the other end of town, two men were preparing for a very large gathering. They were in a hidden underground room, just beneath the home of Urahara. They had hundreds or chairs set up with more on the sidelines. They expected the giant basement to be filled to capacity.

"Hey, do you think this will go well?" Isshin asked.

Urahara looked around the room and smiled, "If we have enough chairs, I think everything should go well."

Isshin smiled and agreed by nodding his head, then asked a bit more seriously, "How much are we going to let them know?"

They stared at each other for a moment before there was any response from the two. Isshin took another a seat from the sidelines and set it up as he waited for Urahara.

"Don't worry my old friend. I won't mention your wife. Though the truth of her death can't remain hidden for too much longer, especially in these times…" he finally replied.

"I know. I can't keep this from Ichigo forever. But I have to hide it for as long as possible. But, it's not just for his sake…" He finished earning a nod from Urahara. He understood.

Isshin, though his face was normally so happy, was once again sad as the memories surrounding his wife's death emerged from his thoughts.

The ground began to shake as the thoughts came closer to his mind. The room dimmed. He saw his wife die in his mind and slowly fall to the floor. The images became more vivid by the moment. He could see himself stare, unable to do a thing. His wife's dead body was on the floor in front of him, but he did nothing but stare at his younger self and feel the pain all over again.

"Isshin," Urahara said putting a hand on his friend's shoulder.

The memories faded away at Urahara's touch; returning back inside of his mind.

"Easy there, you should have control of your memories by now old boy." Urahara said chuckling.

Isshin laughed as well, "I mastered the art of displaying my memories long ago. There is only one that likes to come out on its own. Sorry you had to see that."

"It's not like I wasn't there. The memories are hidden within my own mind as well. Though it was a painful reminder, it's something we must never forget. What will you do if your son asks to see that memory? Once he learns of this power he will ask you."

Isshin sighed, "I can only hope that he is not an exact copy of me and earns other gifts so that he'll never know what I can do and therefore never ask."

"And if one of his gifts on his 22nd birthday is the same as one yours? And what will you do if the gifts come earlier than planned; you know their birthdays aren't exact…"

"Then I will show my son the truth; I will show him the real horrors of the Kurosaki curse…"

* * *

Hours had gone by since the group of 3 began reading and neither of them had finished the first book that was picked up.

"I can't read any more!!" Matsumoto yelled. "I think its time to report what we have so far."

"I agree, my eyes are burning from this little print," Renji said rubbing his eyes.

Rukia sighed and nodded to agree with the two. Renji began first.

"Well, from what I've read so far the men are the protectors and the women are the guardians…" he started.

"Isn't that like the same thing?" Rukia asked.

"Yes and no," he cleared his throat before he further explained, "The men protect the world from evil returning; that's why the men have their 5 senses and physical strength enhanced even before the awakening I gather. The guardians keep the protectors safe so that the protector can continue fighting evil humans. This includes dying for the protector they've awakened or their offspring…"

"Children?!" Both girls yelled asking for an explanation.

"Yeah, it looks like whoever you girls chose to awaken is the guy your stuck with for life."

"Well I guess it would have to be," Rukia said thinking out loud, "If the guardian has to be willing to die for a protector she would have to love him…"

"Yeah, well," Renji said trying to change the subject, "I was trying to find out why we men need you females so badly other than to awaken us, but I couldn't figure it out, I got bored."

Both women just started at Renji in disgust.

"You're ridiculous Renji. Well, I couldn't make out much from my book. What did you find Rukia?" Matsumoto asked.

"Well, I think I found some of the history, but there are a lot of pages missing…" She began as she looked intently at the book, "I don't understand it all, but to continue with what Renji was lacking, the females also have the power to kill the one they awaken. Its checks and balances in case of a renegade, like Aizen I supposed."

Renji looked up in surprise. "If that's the case why would Aizen try to steal one of our women if they could kill him?"

"I don't know, like I said there are a lot of pages missing and it doesn't all make sense. Everything takes place so long ago. I mean, look here," she as she opened the book, "If this stuff is true my brother, Ichigo's and Ishida's dads, and Urahara are over a thousand years old. They are in the records damn near since the beginning… How much does awakening slow down our aging? And why isn't Aizen mentioned yet?"

Everyone began to think about the questions Rukia asked but they had no answers. The whole event yesterday just added more questions to their already questionable lives. Now these books just made it worst! They were no help at all.

"Well, I've got a class coming up. Maybe we can just come back to this after the meeting. So at least we will have a better idea of what we're looking at." Rukia said as she sighed a bit.

"Do you really think they'll go into that much detail?" Renji asked.

Rukia sighed and shook her head. If they hadn't told them anything about the past why would they bother to go into heavy detail? But why? Why won't anyone tell them what the hell was going on?

She needed answers, they all did.

* * *

Ichigo walked out of his shower beginning to think about the meeting. He wondered what new information he would learn and if more detail about Aizen would be given. He walked slowly to his room thinking about what could happen at the meeting.

Ishida was already fully dressed and eating breakfast in the kitchen when Ichigo came out.

"Wow and only an hour later. Are you making out with your mirror again?" Ishida asked sarcastically.

Ichigo made a face at Ishida and went in his room to put some clothes on, but he didn't shut the door.

"Hey Ishida, did you think my dad was acting a little weird yesterday?" he yelled out his door.

"A little, especially when he talked about Aizen. Why, do you think you know what it's about?" Ishida yelled back.

Ichigo finished drying off and pulled a pair of boxers out of his top drawer. He then reached over and put on his pants.

"Yeah, I think it has to do with my mom's death, but the more I think about it, I can't remember anything." He said as he grabbed a shirt and pulled it over his head.

"Nothing?" Ishida asked concerned and took another bite to eat.

Ichigo walked out of his room, fully dressed except for socks, and walked into the kitchen to grab a drink. He started looking through the refrigerator.

"Yeah, whenever I try to think of my mom only pictures of her pop up. I mean, my family doesn't talk about the past, especially her past, but I can't remember anything…."

Ichigo took out a bottle of orange juice and started to drink it while he tried to find a memory of his mother. He thought as hard as he could but nothing was coming. The more he thought the more he realized he couldn't remember anything from before he was about 9 or so.

He panicked. He searched his mind harder now, looking for anything, anything at all from his young childhood.

Ichigo suddenly dropped his orange juice and began to hold his head.

"Ichigo…" Ishida asked alarmed.

Ichigo didn't response. His eyes got wider and he grabbed his head with both his hands now. He continued to think with all his might what the hell happened before he was 9, but nothing came. It made him furious and he didn't stop searching for a clue.

"Ichigo…"

The room dimmed and the ground began to shake. Images began to appear in front of Ichigo and Ishida.

Suddenly, the two were emerged into a different time. Ichigo was playing around an old fashioned building, it looked like a temple. There was another young boy across the way and he began running towards him.

"_I found you Ishida… you suck at this game!" the younger Ichigo said._

"_Actually I wanted you to find me because I was hungry!" the younger Ishida retorted._

"_Boys, its time to eat, your fathers are here." A woman yelled._

"Yes mother," Ichigo yelled as he and he friend began running towards the woman.

It wasn't clear at first; the sun was shinning too brightly. The closer the young boy got the more he was able to make out. First he could see her kimono; it was a beautiful red color and it flowed in the breeze. Her hands reached out and he grabbed it. They were soft and warm.

Finally he could see a bit of her face; a warm loving smile followed by a pair of soft eyes. His mother was beautiful.

Unexpectedly there was an explosion of some sort. Ichigo's mother released her hug and immediately turned to face his and Ishida's father. She had her arms spread out as if to protect them from something.

Both boys were behind his mother. The only thing he could see was the back of his mom's red kimono.

"_DAMN IT!!" He could hear his father yell._

His mother ran to his father with bright light shinning from her. Ichigo knew he should stay but he followed her. She was so fast! She was gliding on the wind, he could barely keep up. But some how he managed, somehow he was extremely fast.

He ran into the middle of something, but he didn't know what. He could see his father bleeding, his mother screaming, and suddenly a dark figure stood in front of him. The man was terrifying. Who was this man?

"_ICHIGO NO!" he could hear his mother yell._

"_MASAKI!!!" his father yelled._

There was a huge explosion. And the memory faded from the kitchen.

Ishida looked at Ichigo in awe. Did he really just see Ichigo's memories?

"Holy shit, Ichigo are you all right?"

Ichigo huffed a little then stood straight up, still holding his head, "I'm ok. But what the hell was that? Could you see that?"

Ishida nodded his head. "I could see your memory of your mother like I was there."

"But you were there! And so was I. You were off hiding," Ichigo began recalling the lost memory, "And my dad was behind my mom, there was some huge fight, but-"

Ichigo stopped talking. He and Ishida looked t each other as they realized what they just saw. Not only was Ichigo able to display a lost memory, but the clothes they wore, how the buildings looked, how everything looked: It was as if they were in a completely different time. But it didn't make sense. They both had childhood memories of _this_ time period.

"Ishida," Ichigo said breaking the silence, "How far back can you remember?"

Ishida thought hard for a moment, "I can remember when we went to a a new school together at about 8 or 9, I remember training and we switched high schools at the same time…"

"I never really thought about it," Ichigo said cutting in, "I just thought I blocked out my mom's death, but I was told she died when I was 6. Just now, when I tried to remember something, that whole "memory display" thing happened. Why can't I remember anything before that, or the next few years after? Can you remember anything before you were 8?"

Ishida searched and searched his mind, but still he could find nothing. "This can't be! I can't remember anything before that! How can this be? How could we not notice this?"

Ichigo couldn't give him an answer. He just looked at the ground angrily. How many lies had they been told? What the hell is going on?

"Ichigo," Ishida asked interrupting Ichigo's thoughts, "Why would they hide our own past from us?"

Ichigo looked from the floor to the ceiling still highly upset. It was a good question. A very damn good question. One he was going to find the answer to at that meeting tonight, no matter what!

* * *

**A/N**: Sorry I have taken so long to update! I hope you guys can forgive me! And there are so many questions to be answered! Sorry if I confused anyone, but I wanted to make sure everyone can feel the characters frustration.

Thanks for reading, and please REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!!!

**Next chapter: The Meeting**


	6. The Meeting

Well, that was a long break! Sorry for the delay! I am going to try to update once a week. More about me later, now what you've been waiting for…

**warning mature content**

* * *

Chapter 6: The Meeting

* * *

Much to everyone's annoyance, the meeting had been postponed for a week due to changing the meeting from a few to all 3 clans and also due to an "information processing error". To Ichigo, it was code for "bullshit gathering". Everything that happened should have a simple answer. He didn't understand a reason for hiding the truth.

"I better get some answers tonight…" Ichigo grumbled to himself.

"I hope so too. I mean all these secrets are ridiculous," Ishida began, "first of all, why are our clans the only ones to communicate? We know absolutely nothing about Rukia and Inoue's clan, let alone who the members are…"

Ichigo sighed, "Yeah."

"Are you finished getting dressed yet?" Ishida asked annoyed, "And by the way, how did that other job go?"

Ichigo furrowed his eyebrows for a moment as he thought, "Oh, you mean the Kagetoki job? It was easy. Expert swords man my ass…"

Ichigo hurried, putting on a nice white button up shirt and quickly threw on a navy blue tie and pair of pants to match his jacket.

"…where are they?" Ichigo began as he stumbled out of his bedroom while putting on his sock, "Hey Ishida, have you seen my…"

"…Shoes? I found them for you already, they are by the door. You are going to make us late. Let's go please." Ishida finished in a low angered tone.

"Hey, they shouldn't have made this meeting semi formal. Give me a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and I'm ready to go, I had to dig for this damn tie…"

Despite not liking formal attire, Ichigo still tried his best to look good in a suit, always wearing a little color in his outfit unlike Ishida who always wore black suits. Ishida was dressed similar to Ichigo except he had no jacket and of course was wearing black.

Ichigo finished putting his shoes on and the two men walked out of the dorm and toward the parking structure. They were headed for Urahada's home. It was about an hours drive from the University, but it was all freeway for the majority of the ride. Depending on whether or not Ichigo was pulled over for speeding, he could get there in thirty to forty-five minutes.

The two entered the car and Ichigo quickly pulled off. The car ride was silent. Ishida had spent the week at Ichigo's dorm. They discussed and questioned so many things that all areas of interest were exhausted. The only thing left was to get to the meeting and listen to what the elders had to say. Or better yet, what they wouldn't say. Neither man expected to hear the whole truth tonight, but they were hoping to hear something about their 22nd year at least.

"Hey Ichigo…"

"Yeah?"

"Try not to be upset tonight. I know how you get when you're lied to…"

"Whatever," Ichigo said nonchalantly as he sped up, "We're almost there."

* * *

The meeting hall was beginning to fill up. There were enough seats for at least two or three thousand people. The chairs were all red with cushioning. There was also a large stage up front with a podium and a projector screen. The projector screen was the size of a movie theater screen.

"Who'd a thought Urahada had a finished basement?" Matsumoto joked as she and Rukia began looking for a seat. Though the joke was corny, Rukia laughed. Matsumoto could always lighten the mood.

Rukia choose seats for the two of them somewhat close to the front, but also near the entrance stairs. She sat down and began to scope the crowd out. _"No Ichigo yet_," she thought. She sent him a text earlier letting him know she found some interesting material. They were supposed to meet up and sit together. Thirty minutes went by already.

"Stop worrying, I'm sure he is on his way," Matsumoto began.

"I'm not worried, there is just so much to discuss…"

"I know. Wow, speak of the devil, look over there," Matsumoto said pointing by the stairs.

Ichigo and Ishida had just arrived. They sort of ran in and they looked exhausted. Both women assumed they had to park in the back since they arrived so late. Rukia unconsciously straightened her dark purple dress and fiddled with her necklace as she saw Ichigo searching for a seat. Matsumoto whispered to her that she looked fine and she waved the two men over.

"Matsumoto," Ichigo began, "Bright pink evening gown, I wouldn't have expected anything less or tighter…"

"Oh, Ichigo, you're too kind, especially with that nice suit on that doesn't fit your face!" She smiled.

"Ok you two, lets sit down," Ishida said as they hurried into the seats.

Ichigo sat down next to Rukia, and Ishida sat next to him. The 4 friends stared at the stage as the elders made their final preparations before the presentation. Ishida's father was organizing speech cards, Urahada was adjusting the microphone and Isshin was directing stragglers to their seats.

After a few moments everything settled down and Urahada dimmed the lights for the projector screen. He walked over to the stage and stood in front of the podium.

"Good evening everyone. As you may have heard, there have been a few developments that have caused quite a stir within the clans. We are going to explain as much as possible tonight, so please, bear with us, and hold all questions until the end."

He paused for a moment and looked over to his right. An old man in his view nodded and Urahada proceeded.

"Most of you now know of all the existing clans, and many of you are wondering why this was kept secret. The separation was necessary in order to protect you all from what just occurred. But even with our attempts of keeping a low profile, we were still found."

He paused again and walked over to the projection screen and turned it on. The screen was black with white letters. Urahada walked away as an old man with a long white beard walked out. He was dressed very formal in a tuxedo and walked with a gold cane. He read the screen as he proceeded to the podium. It was Commander Yamamoto, the head of all the clans.

"_Evil exists within all men. It is our job as Defenders and Guardians to prevent evil from prevailing and arising from within."_

Upon reaching the podium he grabbed the controller to the projector and clicked to the next slide. It was a picture of fire, surrounding some kind of large animal. But it was no animal any of them had ever seen. The teeth were huge and bloody as it hovered over a crowd of men, women, and children who were all terrified and running. It was a disturbing picture.

Ichigo looked around and saw the majority of the crowd was disturbed, except for Ishida who was studying the image.

"Do you see that?" Ishida whispered.

"What?" Ichigo asked.

"In the corner, behind the animal, its shadow…"

Ichigo looked and the creature's shadow was small, in the shape of a man, not a monster.

"What the hell is up with that?" He questioned.

The old man at the podium waited for the crowd to review the image and settle down before he spoke. He cleared his throat and began.

"As some of you may have noticed, the monster's shadow is that of a man. That monster is the true nature of an evil man's soul. It can be released if we don't kill these evil men before their monstrous souls mature. This is the evil our male defenders feel when they go hunting…"

"Hunting?!" the crowd exclaimed.

"When our men go on their "jobs" we don't pick based on money alone, you all know that feeling. It's your hunters' instinct to detect this kind of evil."

Yamamoto continued talking about the things his dad and Urahada told him earlier this week. Ichigo was in shock. So he was hunting for pray, like an animal? What did this all mean, what did this have to do with his mother's death? He was getting upset the room was getting dark again. Ishida looked over to him to clam him down.

"Ichigo, clam down, it happening again…" he said grabbing Ichigo's shoulder. But it wasn't helping.

"What's wrong, what's happening to him?" Rukia asked concerned.

Ichigo held his head trying to calm down, trying to stop the image from coming out. But it didn't help. Yamamoto stopped talking. Everyone turned to Ichigo. The room grew completely dark and the image appeared. It was strange, it was not a memory Ichigo recalled. And Aizen was there; he was standing over a bleeding adult Ichigo and not a child as he was before. Aizen had fire and stones coming out of his hands, the town was exploding. Aizen had been awakened, and there was a girl crying in the side lines behind Aizen. There was also a glimmer of light behind Ichigo, but no one could make out what it was. It was loud, the fires were roaring, people were screen, and you could hear swords clanking. Ichigo began charging at Aizen with all his might.

"No, Ichigo! Wait!" everyone could hear a girl screen faintly from the dream. But who was it?

The room returned to normal and Ichigo stumbled from his seat. This was not an image from his past, this was….

"It appears your son has your gift Isshin," Urahada said, "And so soon, this isn't good…"

The crowd was alarmed. They didn't understand what was going on. Ichigo already has his gift, but his birthday was not until the middle of next year.

No one was more stunned than Ichigo. He didn't understand. He can see the future too? And he was hot, as if the flames were real.

"So we have less time than we thought." Yamamoto interrupted the crowd. "We didn't think this was necessary, but it appears we have to. When Aizen attempted to steal one of the chosen women and failed, he set out for revenge. It took several years, but he acquired power, from another source, an evil source, and it caused us all to jump through time. Most of our records where lost, and birthdays are not inline with the times due to the huge jump. 2000 years ago, the seasons were different; summer was winter and the earth was flat."

"Flat?" the crowd yelled again.

"The continents had not yet separated. We have all lived a very long time, though we are not immortal. The time jump makes it seam that much longer and it also caused minimal memory loss for the elders and vast memory loss among our children."

"What happened to the clans, there were five," Ishida yelled out.

"During the battle with Aizen, he recruited many evil creatures. There were so many loses that we combined the clans. The five clans were Earth, Fire, Water, Metal, and Wind. There were no survivors of the wind clan."

Byakuya was on stage now, he looked at Rukia and she lowered her head. There was a survivor of the wind clan, only one. And before the catastrophe there were always three chosen women, not two. Why is her brother making her hide this?

"In order to protect our future, the chosen men, must be paired with one of the potential chosen women. There will be no excuses. A list is being sent to everyone's cell phones. We are adjourned."

Rukia opened her messages as soon as it went off. Ichigo had been paired with Inoue. Rukia gasped to herself and looked over to Ichigo. He just stared at his phone for a few seconds and deleted the text.

Yamamoto walked off the stage and immediately began talking with Urahada and the other elders. They left without really saying anything other than we are in danger and they believe in arranged marriages.

Rukia wanted to talk to Ichiog, but her brother approached her quickly after the meeting was adjourned. He continued to say that she should not reveal anything, no matter how she was tempted. She sighed as he continued, she could see Ichigo from afar getting a similar lecture.

* * *

"Gin, can you feel that?" Aizen asked?

"Yep, it's almost time." He smiled, "It's going to happen soon."

The two men sat down to dinner in a fairly expensive restaurant and began sipping their wine. Both were dressed in nice black suits with white pint stripes. They could sense that something was about to happen that would make their plans come together.

Aizen finished his salad and asked the waiter to continue with the main course. The dinner was a celebration. They were accompanied by two women, Halibel and Nelliel, who were not seen at the moment. They were in a private room and for the majority of the first course both women were under the table.

Halibel, enjoyed her time with Aizen. She was handling her self quite well under the table as Aizen held her head into place. She also rubbed her hands over her chest to keep herself aroused. She was jealous of whoever the chosen girl was. She wished she could awaken Aizen.

Nelliel on the other hand, was not happy with her "position". She was given to Gin as payment by her family for debt. He told her if she behaved, he would release her one day. So she does as he pleases, whenever he asked her.

"Nel," Gin said, "Why don't you come out and sit on me instead, I was never found of spit down there."

"What a great Idea, Halibel, you come out to, the waiter won't mind, he's one of ours."

Nel hiked up her skirt and sat on top of Gin and immediately he thrust himself into her. She groaned, but it wasn't something she wasn't used to. Gin took pleasure in making her uncomfortable and even more pleasure when she gave and enjoyed him ravishing her.

"I hate you," she whispered.

"Not for long," Gin said as he opened her shirt and began caressing and chest, "You love me inside you, you love me touching you." He finished as Nel closed her eyes in disgust. She always let him think he won. She had to. She just imagined he was someone else toward the end.

Aizen had Halibel remove her clothes and bended over the top of the table. He casually moved his plate aside as if this was normal and he was being polite. He grabbed one of her breast and forcefully grabbed her thigh and thrust himself into her from behind. She let out a huge moan and spread her legs wider to let him in. She was dripping all over the place.

"I'm getting a little bored. Gin, can I borrow Nel for a moment?"

"Sure, as long as Halibel can finish the job. Her head is so much better than Nel's" Gin replied.

"Sure why not. Nel sit on Halibel's back can you?"

Nel did as she was told. And Gin climbed onto the table so Halibel could complete her task. He grabbed her head and caressed it as she continued to pleasure him.

For some reason Aizen loved kissing Nel and holding onto her breast. As she sat on Halibel he immediately kissed her and forced his tongue into her mouth. He removed his hands from Halibel and unbuttoned Nel's top. He started to rub Nel's breast, making the nipples hard before he started to kiss them. Nel despised Azien, almost as much as Gin, but he always touched her gently and never manhandled her they way he did Halibel. At times he made it hard for her to image someone else.

"_I think I'm in the mood to piss people off_," Nel thought to herself as she kissed Aizen back and put her arms around his neck.

Aizen was surprised, but he smiled. He was always in the mood to make others upset. He removed himself from Halibel and gently placed Nel on the table next to her and layed her down. He whispered in her ear, "Try not to enjoy this too much," Before he began making his way down. He kissed her breast and her belly, and began to lick the inside of her thigh, getting closer and closer to her opening.

Her body was excited, so Aizen stopped short of licking her "lips" and slowly entered inside her. He laid on top of her and kissed her with each thrust.

"I love this game we play Nel," Azien whispered as he nibbled at her ears, "Almost done…" He said louder so Gin could here. Nel began to moan with pleasure.

"Don't damage my things," Gin said jokingly, but with Aizen's head facing the opposite direction he did not smile. Halibel was not happy either. She hated how Aizen was with Nel. And not to mention Gin was going to make her swallow.

"The next few days are going to be busy," Aizen said, "Lets all try to enjoy ourselves. We'll switch again later tonight." He said as he succeeded in making Nel come. "I love that face Nel," He said as he came inside her.

* * *

Rukia managed to slip away to catch up with Ichigo. He offered to give her a ride home and she accepted. They dropped Ishida off first and he headed toward her apartment.

The car ride was quiet again, until Ichigo finally spoke.

"You want me to walk you to your door?" He asked.

"Yes, that would be nice." She stated solemnly.

They arrived to Rukia's dorm and slowly walked through the entrance and arrived at the elevator. The doors opened and they entered. Ichigo hit the 7th floor.

Rukia's heart was broken. Ichigo was in an arranged marriage now because of this mess. This couldn't be happening. She wanted to cry. She wished she hadn't put off her feelings for so long; she hated herself for it now. She turned and glanced at Ichigo, he was obviously upset too. She turned away and looked at the elevator lights. Looking at him would only make her more upset.

Suddenly Ichigo pulled the stop button on the elevator. He didn't say a word until he grabbed Rukia and held her in a deep embrace.

"You're still mine right?" he asked.

Rukia looked up at Ichigo and kissed him softly, "Yes I am." She said with a tear streaming down her check.

Ichigo kissed the tear on her check and slowly wiped the stain away with his thumb. He brought her face closer to his and he kissed her again, His tongue slipped slowly passed her lips and he caressed her tongue. Their bodies were touching now and he was holding her by the back. It was a deep kiss, several kisses. They only paused to breath every now and then.

He unzipped her dress and started to caress her bare back and kissed her neck. Rukia moaned as Ichigo picked her up and leaned against the elevator wall. Rukia's dress was hiked up her thighs as she wrapped her legs around Ichigo. They continued kissing as Rukia held onto Ichigo rubbing the back of his neck. He had a hand on her thigh and the other on her back as he began kissing her ear.

He whispered, "I love you…" and he returned to kissing her ear.

Gasping through her moans Rukia smiled, "and I love you,"

Suddenly the mood stopped. Ichigo lifted his head and looked at Rukia. Her face was pale. He was still touching her back and could feel the reason for her expression.

"Rukia, what the…"

"Ahhhh!" she screamed, "…the daggers, take them out!"

Ichigo had no idea what she was talking about, but he felt something on her back and just pulled at whatever it was. One by one he pulled bloody daggers out of her back.

Rukia fell to the floor catching her breath. She looked around and there were three daggers on the floor.

"Ichigo, my back, what does it look like?" she asked still out of breath.

Ichigo looked at her back, still not sure what was going on. The daggers were real, and before his eyes they turned back into a tattoo, "There are two. One big one is going through the heart and another with blood on it and yellow around it. Its approaching the other sword, as if attacking. It's a tattoo again and you're also bleeding like crazy. Rukia what is this?" he said concerned and confused.

"How many did you pull out?" she asked.

"Four"

"But there are only three on the floor. Why is there another one there still? Has the tattoo changed since the last time I looked?" she questioned.

Rukia looked as confused as Ichigo. She slowly stood up and walked to the stop button and pressed it in. The elevator started again, rising to the seventh floor.

"Rukia, will you tell me what is going on?" He said sternly.

"Yes, but after," Rukia said as they arrived to the 7th floor.

"…After what?"

"…After we break into my brother's library."

The 7th floor light blinked and the doors opened. Rukia pressed the button to close the elevator doors back and hit the main floor button.

"Lost records or not, my brother is hiding something from me. And we are going to find out what that is."

Ichigo nodded his head. He wanted to find out more answers as well. Especially before he told Rukia he pulled 4 daggers out and was compelled to stab her with one through her tattooed heart.

The elevators doors opened up, but Rukia and Ichigo stood still in shock.

"Ni… Ni-sama…" Rukia gasped.

"You have no idea what you two have done." Byakuya began, as Isshin, Commander Yamamoto and Ryūken Ishida appeared behind him.

* * *

End of Chapter 6

A/N: Ok! What a chapter! Again, sorry for the long wait! My life was a mess, having to work two-three jobs to pay for college, but never fear! I got it under control! Back to my love of IchiRuki!

Don't forget to REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!

Next Chapter: Should we be doing this?

(Yes this chapter title has a hidden innuendo!)


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